Farioli: ‘We played a special match’

Terem Moffi was the match winner for Les Aiglons in a tightly-contested affair at the Allianz Riviera, slotting home from close range after good work from Morgan Sanson.

Nice, who were without a host of stars through injury and suspension, found a way to get the job done and Farioli praised the character of his players.

“For the umpteenth time, the boys played a really very special match,” said Farioli after watching his side continue their unbeaten start to the season. “We knew that it would be complicated after the international break, we had a few injuries and suspension so we knew that it would be difficult. 

“We didn’t produce our best game of the season. In the first half, we were sluggish but we came back in the second half with a better state of mind and more desire to go for the win. It was a reward for what these boys do all week in training.

The victory sees Nice move to within a point of PSG at the top of table with third-placed Monaco five-points further adrift. But Farioli is refusing to think too far ahead into a possible title showdown with Luis Enrique’s men and expects his side to encounter some roadbumps in the near future.

“We’ve managed to create a small gap to some teams but the championship is still long,” he added. “The difficulties will come starting with our next game in Nantes, they will give us a hard time and then when we return from the winter break. Also, the Africa Cup of Nations will affect many of our players. We must accumulate points as we have done today.

Nice boast the best defence in Europe’s top five leagues with just four goals conceded in their opening 13 league games and the Italian coach revealed the secret to his side’s defensive solidity.

“The first thing is that my defence has the right state of mind and the desire to win a duel,” he revealed. “We concede very little and when we concede, we know how to quickly find our solidity again. We don’t work for statistics but to be solid, game after game. We focus on the present and the future and not on what we have done in the past.

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