Guingamp vs Nice preview - Guingamp aim to ruin Puel's party

Posted Friday, October 24, 2014 by PA

Struggling Guingamp aim to end a positive week on a high against Nice opponents whose coach Claude Puel has special cause for celebration in reaching 1,000 games as player and coach.

Guingamp climbed off the bottom of Ligue 1 with last week's shock 2-1 win at Lille and followed up their third domestic victory of the season with a battling goalless draw away to Dinamo Minsk in the Europa League on Thursday night.

"To be honest, our ambition remains to get out of the group," on-loan midfielder Sylvain Marveaux told Ligue1.com ahead of Nice's visit to the Stade du Roudourou on Sunday evening.

"But we know we're not going to win the Europa League."

Marveaux, who is on loan from English Premier League club Newcastle, has been in fine form for a Guingamp side who ended a run of four straight defeats at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy last weekend.

Guingamp coach Jocelyn Gourvennec has striker Mustapha Diallo available after suspension and Ronnie Schwartz and Maxime Baca are also in contention to start.

But centre-back Benjamin Angoua has been suspended for two games for trying to stop the referee from giving a red card to one of his teammates against Montpellier last month.

Puel played nearly 500 games in a 17-year career at Monaco and is now on the brink of reaching 1,000 games after coaching at Monaco, Lille, Lyon and Nice, but the 53-year-old has injury problems as he seeks the consistency to climb the table after winning two, losing two and drawing one of the last five games.

Midfielder Niklas Hult hopes to feature after being forced off during the 1-0 defeat to Bastia last weekend with a neck injury but Dario Cvitanich, Mahamane Traore and Albert Rafetraniaina all seem set to miss out.

Nice winger Alassane Plea told the club's official website: "We had two days off (after the Bastia defeat) and it allowed us to reflect and think about something else.

"We should not overreact but Guingamp is important for us and the whole group is focused on the next game."