Paulo Fonseca has no interest in chasing records, and his only goal is to beat Nice for Lyon to boost their hopes of being in the top four in Ligue 1.
Lyon sit third in the table after Marseille dropped points in a 2-2 draw with Strasbourg on Saturday, and could now open a five-point gap over Les Minots.
Their rise up the table is due to a streak of six consecutive wins in Ligue 1, their best streak in almost six years. That streak extends to seven games in all competitions.
But Fonseca has played down the idea that Lyon, who will be without Endrick due to suspension, are chasing victory for any reason other than adding three points to their tally.
“Is [records] It’s not a goal for me. I love having that possibility, but the most important thing is what we can do at the end of the season,” Fonseca said.
“I know we have long winning streaks, but I don’t know the exact statistics.
“We are at the top of the table, we have the Europa League and the French Cup, so there will be pressure. We need to face this moment with a lot of composure.”
— Olympique Lyonnais (@OL_English) February 14, 2026
Meanwhile, Nice are struggling at the other end of the table, sitting in 14th place with 23 points, although they are nine points ahead of the relegation play-off spot.
They are undefeated in their last three games and come into this match after a 0-0 draw with Monaco.
But they will have to work hard to win against Lyon, who boast one of the best defensive records in Ligue 1, having conceded just 20 goals in their 21 games so far, a source of pride for Fonseca.
“The character of this team, the way all the players are willing to work defensively, that is the main reason [for their solidity]”Fonseca added.
“Before the season started, I studied what was happening in football, what our strengths were and where we needed to improve.
“I understood that to improve defensively we needed to progress individually, we worked a lot on our defensive line and our pressure.
“But the main explanation is the character of the team and how we work together in defense. We work a lot on the individual aspect, one-on-one situations, how to defend in those situations.”
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Lyon – Pavel Suic
Sulc scored his 10th goal of the Ligue 1 season last time out to secure a 1-0 win over Nantes.
The Lyon forward is the fourth Czech player to score at least 10 goals in a single Ligue 1 season, after Antonin Tichy in 1947-48 (10), Karel Michlovsky in 1949-50 (16) and Lubos Kubik in 1992-93 (11).
Nice – Elye Wahi
Wahi has scored more goals in Ligue 1 against Lyon than any other opponent (eight, including four goals at the Groupama Stadium with Montpellier in May 2023).
Wahi has scored three goals this season in just four league starts and has the best minutes-to-goal ratio of any Nice player (one every 123 minutes).
