Nicolas Pépé is set to make his long-awaited return for OGC Nice, although the Arsenal loanee will have to wait to force his way back into the starting XI.
Bar Dante, who is suspended from the match after picking up a suspension in the first leg against Sheriff Tiraspol in Chisinau last week, Les Aiglons’ starting lineup is expected to be largely unchanged. Youssouf Ndayishimiye, who has impressed since arriving at Nice in January, is expected to take his place.
Ross Barkley isn’t registered in Nice’s UEFA Europa Conference League squad, and will therefore be ineligible for the match against Sheriff on Thursday. Sofiane Diop and Antoine Mendy are also out, whilst Youcef Atal has suffered a setback in his return from injury.
Nice have a one-goal advantage heading into the match at the Allianz Riviera. Whilst it will be Didier Digard who chooses the team, the Nice manager won’t officially be managing his side on Thursday due to an obscure UEFA rule. Instead, it will be his assistant, Julien Sablé, who will officially take charge, although Digard will still be on the touchline.
Nice likely lineup v Sheriff
Kasper Schmeichel – Melvin Bard, Jean-Clair Todibo, Youssouf Ndayishimiye, Jordan Lotomba – Pablo Rosario, Hicham Boudaoui, Aaron Ramsey – Khéphren Thuram, Terem Moffi, Gaëtan Laborde.
GFFN | Luke Entwistle
