Ten-man Nice salvage goalless draw at Montpellier in Ligue 1

Updated: May 17, 2023, 04:58 am

Nice salvaged a 0-0 draw at Montpellier despite being reduced to 10 men in the opening half, but their second place in Ligue 1 was under threat on Saturday.

A week after beating leaders Paris Saint-Germain, Christophe Galtier's side had Dante sent off in the 35th minute before weathering the storm to secure a point.

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They have 50 points from 28 games and trail PSG, who host Girondins de Bordeaux on Sunday, by 12 points.

Third placed Olympique de Marseille will leapfrog Nice into second if they beat Stade Brestois away by a three-goal margin on Sunday. Montpellier are 11th on 38 points.

At La Mosson, Nice got off to a good start as Andy Delort's chip hit Jonas Omlin's post after four minutes.

But Montpellier applied pressure and they came close on several occasions, with Nice keeper Walter Benitez making a couple of good saves.

Centre back Dante was sent off 10 minutes from the interval for bringing down Elye Wahi, with the hosts being awarded a penalty in the process.

Savanier softly chipped the ball up the middle of the goal looking to dummy Benitez, but the keeper did not move and made an easy save to keep his side afloat.

Montpellier continued to push after the break and Kephren Thuram cleared the ball off his goal line in the last minute as Nice's substitutes did a great job in preserving the draw.