PLAYER RATINGS | OGC Nice 6-0 Brest: <i>Le Gym </i>book their Champions League ticket | OneFootball

Ligue 1 McDonald’s, Round 34, 17/05/25

An Evann Guessand-inspired OGC Nice eased past Stade Brestois (6-0) to secure a fourth-place finish, ensuring that they will take part in the UEFA Champions League qualifiers in the summer.

The Match

Nice went into the match knowing that a win would secure them a place in the UCL qualifiers but, at the very least, they just had to match results in Lille and Strasbourg. There was a nervousness in the opening exchanges for Le Gym, with Marcin Bulka making a foray into no-man’s-land, offering Brest a chance to take the lead.

Le Gym’s midfield was invisible in the opening minutes, being played through with ease whenever the Breton side looked to get forward, but Nice quickly steadied themselves and ended the game as a contest before the half-hour mark. Guessand, a shadow of his former self in recent weeks, showed composure to lob the ball over a sliding Abdoulaye Ndiaye before picking the right moment to unleash his shot past Marco Bizot.

The Dutch goalkeeper, in potentially his final game for Les Ty-Zéfs, picked the ball out of the net once again just two minutes later. This time it was Guessand – either intentionally or unintentionally – with the assist as his volley found Gaëtan Laborde just a couple of yards out. The Frenchman made no mistake, slotting into the empty net.

Moffi gets his moment in the sun

Bradley Locko was then at fault for the third, seeing his pocket picked by Jonathan Clauss in his own box. He brought down the France international, and Badredine Bouanani did the rest from the spot. The Algerian then spurned two great chances to add to his tally, drawing a fine save from Bizot on one occasion and then missing the target entirely a couple of minutes later.

But Nice did get their third, and it came thanks to an acrobatic Laborde volley. The night kept getting better for the home side as Terem Moffi, who has missed most of the season with an ACL injury, latched onto Sofiane Diop’s ball in behind, rounded Bizot and slotted into the empty net.

The Nigerian almost got a second but couldn’t beat Bizot from point-blank range on two attempts, but Ali Abdi could, tapping in from just a couple of yards out. 6-0 it finished. Nice will play in Europe regardless of their fate in the UCL qualifiers. For Brest, it is a sombre end to a historic season.

Nice player ratings

Marcin Bulka – 5

Dante – 6

Moïse Bombito – 5

Antoine Mendy – 5

Melvin Bard – 6

Baptiste Santamaria – 5

Hicham Boudaoui – 7

Jonathan Clauss –  6

Badredine Bouanani – 7

A livewire throughout, he set the tone for his display with a smart dink over the top for Laborde, who almost gave Nice the lead in the opening minutes with his half-volley off the post. He took his penalty calmly and then should have added to his tally. His first chance was denied expertly by Bizot; he should have done better with his second chance, all of his own making, thanks to his pressing. His finishing still needs work but the way that Bouanani has ended the season is certainly the source of encouragement at Nice. In Europe once again, the Algerian will be afforded game time next season, too.

Gaëtan Laborde – 7

Evann Guessand – 8

This is the version of Guessand that we have seen so often for much of the season but so little in the past couple of months. In what is potentially Guessand’s final game for his formative club, he was the architect behind their Champions League qualification, netting the first and setting up the second. He re-discovered his form at just the right time; a parting gift, perhaps.

Brest selected player ratings

Bradley Locko –  3

Kamory Doumbia – 6

Kenny Lala – 3

Marco Bizot – 6

Abdoulaye Ndiaye – 3

GFFN | Luke Entwistle – reporting from Nice