Ndayishimiye and Abdelmonem nearing return as Dante steadies, Puel sees hope for Nice defence | OneFootball

Nice possess Ligue 1’s 17th-ranked defence and have already shipped 66 goals in all competitions this season. According to L'Équipe, Claude Puel believes there are signs of improvement and that key centre-backs are nearing returns as the Aiglons visit Paris FC on Sunday at 15:00.

The contest looks ripe for goals. Paris FC have the worst home defence with 22 conceded in 11 matches, while Nice are the second-worst away back line with 26 in 11. Nice are 14th, one point above Paris FC.

Nice have gone 27 away games without a clean sheet, a run last seen between January 1979 and April 1980. Their European campaign compounded matters, with seven defeats in eight games, 15 conceded, and a 33rd-place finish in the league phase.

Since the turn of the year Puel has replaced Franck Haise, now at Rennes, yet the numbers have only eased from 1.88 goals conceded per match to 1.72. Captain Dante, 42, featured only five times in five months due to sore knees.

With Youssouf Ndayishimiye, Mohamed Abdelmonem and Moïse Bombito sidelined long term, Nice often relied on raw recruits Bah, 19, and Oppong, 21, at centre-back. There were also gaps out wide and the protection ahead of them was not always sufficient.

Puel said intensive video work has brought attentive responses and promising steps that are not yet showing on the pitch. He stressed the need to build chemistry and balance between very young players and older teammates, adding that small positional details can change passing and shooting lanes and that such feel comes with experience.

Encouragingly, Ndayishimiye, 27, played 45 minutes in a 2-0 friendly win over Grasse on Wednesday, alongside regular first-team substitutes and fellow returnee Abdelmonem, who suffered the same knee injury last spring. Puel welcomed their progress but warned that arranging friendlies to top up minutes is difficult, lamenting the loss of reserve teams. Patience will still be required, and Bombito, out since September with a tibia-fibula fracture, is due to rejoin the group in the first half of March.

Source: L'Équipe