Nice slump to third defeat without Balotelli

NICE: Nice saw their poor start to the season continue as they went down to a 3-0 defeat at newly-promoted Amiens in Ligue 1.

With Mario Balotelli sidelined due to illness and Ivorian midfielder Jean-Michael Seri left out after the collapse of his transfer to Barcelona, Nice slumped to a third loss in four league games.

Lucien Favre’s side fell behind when former Chelsea forward Gael Kakuta netted from a freekick, the goal Amiens’ first ever in the top flight.

Moussa Konate then added a brace as Nice toiled, with recent signing Wesley Sneijder struggling to make an impact.

It is a new blow for Nice after last season’s third- placed side were beaten by Napoli in the Champions League playoffs in midweek, losing 4-0 on aggregate.

Earlier, Lyon preserved their unbeaten record with a 0-0 draw away at Claudio Ranieri’s Nantes as both Bertrand Traore and Nabil Fekir hit the woodwork.

Still looking to strengthen after the sales of Alexandre Lacazette, Corentin Tolisso and captain Maxime Gonalons over the summer, Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas later confirmed that the club are closing on another new signing.

Senegal- born midfielder Pape

€ Cheikh Diop is close to a 25mil (RM127mil) move from Celta Vigo while Aulas has also hinted at interest in Hatem Ben Arfa, out of favour at Paris St Germain.

“It is almost done, he needs to pass the medical in Lyon,” Aulas said.

“It is an important deal. There was a lot of interest in him, including from Tottenham (Hotspur).”

Bordeaux are still unbeaten after Francois Kamano and Younousse Sankhare netted in a 2-1 win over Troyes, while there were also wins for Caen, Dijon and Toulouse.

Paris St Germain continued their perfect start to the season by beating St Etienne 3-0 on Friday to make it four wins from four.

Edinson Cavani outshone Neymar by scoring twice at the Parc des Princes either side of a Thiago Motta goal. — AFP