In the 22nd round match of the French championship, Lyon will host Nice. For the hosts the match is important because it will help them consolidate third place. The current gap to Marseille is two points. But the Provencal side had already played their game, failing to win. So Lyon can create a more comfortable cushion and, at the same time, close the gap on PSG, who sit nine points ahead of Paulo Fonseca's team but lost in their 22nd-round match. Lyon have been on a very good run, winning 12 matches in a row across all competitions. They have not lost since December 11. In the previous round, Lyon defeated Nantes (1:0); earlier in the Coupe de France they beat Laval (2:0) and overcame Lille (1:0) in Ligue 1. Lyon sometimes play open football, sometimes a more defensive style, but they invariably achieve positive results. This has allowed the team to rise so high and begin to cement their place in the Champions League spots. Nice are currently sitting in 14th place. They recently endured a run of poor results. Now they have improved somewhat, but still perform with mixed success. The gap to Paris is only one point; they are level on points with Le Havre, four points behind Brest. In the previous round Nice drew with Monaco (0:0), earlier in the Coupe de France they defeated Montpellier (3:2) and shared Ligue 1 points with Brest (2:2). In the first leg of the current season Nice defeated Lyon 3:2. In the three previous matches the Lyonnais were stronger.