Delort assist not enough as Boudaoui fires Nice past Montpellier

Andy Delort provided an assist while Hichem Boudaoui found the back of the net as Nice secured a 3-1 victory over Montpellier in Sunday’s Ligue 1 game.

Delort has been in fine form for Michel Der Zakarian’s men in recent games, scoring in each of their last three matches, including his brace against Lille in a Cup tie.

The forward was afforded his 26th league start and continued his eye-catching performances in the encounter but his effort could not help his side avoid defeat at Allianz Riviera.

His compatriot Boudaoui also shone for Adrian Ursea’s men, scoring his second league goal of the season to inspire his side to clinch the three points in the game.

Montpellier started the match impressively, opening the scoring as early as the third minute when Delort set up Gaetan Laborde, who powered home a fine header.

Nice move quickly to level proceedings and got it three minutes later when Boudaoui found his way into the box and then fired past goalkeeper Jonas Omlin.

The Eagles continued to dominate proceedings and in the 39th minute, Jean-Clair Todibo gave them the lead after he was set up by Alexis Claude.

Five minutes before the half-time break, Claude scored a goal of his own, hitting his effort from close range after pouncing on a loose ball.

After the restart, Nice continued to dominate proceedings, making several attempts to try and further increase their lead.

Algeria international Youcef Atal came close to scoring for the Eagles in the 49th minute when he unleashed a ferocious shot but his effort was blocked.

Dan Ndoye, who was brought on in the second half was also close to hitting the back of the net in the 85th minute when he dribbled past his markers before directing his shot towards goal but it was intercepted.

Delort featured for the duration of the game, and has now scored 15 goals and provided 10 assists in 29 appearances across all competitions.

With the result, Nice moved to the ninth spot on the league table after gathering 46 points from 34 games while Montpellier dropped to eighth with 47 points from the same number of matches.

The Algeria stars will hope to continue their impressive performances for their respective clubs in their next league games.