The Round of 16 match of the French Cup between Nice and Montpellier will take place on 4 february at Allianz Riviera stadium. Nice vs Montpellier: prediction, betting odds and statistics.
Nice
Nice did not advance to this stage without difficulty. First, the team beat Saint-Étienne at home (2:1), then away it only managed to overcome Nantes thanks to better penalty kicks (1:1, pen. 5:3). In last season's competition the club were eliminated in the Round of 16 by modest Stade Briochin (1:2), which represents the third division. It should also be noted that in the 21st century the club has never won the French Cup. The club only reached the final in 2022, when it lost to Nantes (0:1).
- The team did not lose in normal time in 7 of its last 9 matches in this competition (4 wins and 3 draws).
- Nice did not score more than one goal in 6 of its previous matches in the French Cup.
- Both teams to score occurred in 7 of the club's last 8 matches in this competition.
Potential Nice Lineup (4-3-3)*
Maxime Dupé – Juma Ba, Jonathan Kloss, Melvin Bard, Brad-Hamilton Mancunga – Tanguy Ndombele, Charles Vanhoutte, Morgan Sanson – Elye Wahi, Sofiane Diop, Tom Lushe.
The club's medical list includes defenders Melvin Bard, Mohamed Abdelmonem and Youssouf Ndayishimiye, as well as defender Moïse Bombito. It should be noted that forward Terem Moffi and midfielder Jérémy Boga are on sick leave, while the first is in the process of transferring to another club.
Montpellier
As a representative of Ligue 2 the team had to start much earlier in the French Cup. Interestingly, all four matches were played away, but the visitors won all of them, and all with clean sheets. In the first three rounds against opponents from lower divisions Montpellier won 1:0 or 2:0. In the previous round the club met a Ligue 1 side, Metz, and defeated them convincingly on their own ground with a 4:0 score. In last season's competition the team were knocked out as early as the fifth round, losing to Le Puy (0:4). It should also be noted that in this century the club have only once reached the semi-finals (in 2021).
- At least one team failed to score in five of the club's previous French Cup matches.
- Nice won 6 of their last 7 away matches in this competition.
- The club scored at least two goals in 5 of their previous 7 away games in this cup.
Potential Montpellier Lineup (4-2-3-1)*
Viktor Djodic – Enzo Chato, Julien Laporte, Yaël Muanga, Luca Mincarelli – Bechir Omeragic, Everson Pereira – Nicolas Péyi, Téji Savanier, Yanis Issufu – Alexander Mendy.
Referee
Romain Lissorgue (France)
Matches – 11 (Ligue 1 and French Cup, 2025/26);
Yellow/Red Cards (including second yellows) – 47;
Average Yellow/Red Cards Per Match – 4.3;
Red Cards – 2;
Fouls Per Match – 27;
Penalties – 18%.
Nice vs Montpellier: Match Prediction
This match will pit opponents representing two of France's top divisions. We will not give automatic preference to the Ligue 1 representative, since Nice have been unimpressive this season and are located in the bottom half of the table. At the same time the home side concede too many goals – on average around 1.9 per game – and only Metz have worse defensive statistics. Metz, by the way, were beaten by Montpellier in the previous stage, and it was a heavy defeat.
As for the visitors, they are a solid midtable outfit in Ligue 2, and they are only 3 points off the top five, so they can still realistically fight for promotion. Montpellier have won two league matches in a row and four in a row in the French Cup. The visiting team have become consistent scorers recently and, judging by form, should find the net in the upcoming match.
We expect at least three goals in this match. That level of scoring, incidentally, occurred in 5 of the last 7 head-to-head meetings between these opponents in Ligue 1 and the French Cup.
Prediction: Over 2.5 goals
* For each team the starting lineup shown is from their last match in this competition.
