Second-placed Lyon will be looking to make the decisive step towards Champions League qualification by defeating top 3 rivals Nice on Friday evening.

Les Aiglons, on the other hand, have a chance to leapfrog their more illustrious opponents in the league standings and edge closer to a near-perfect season.

Following several difficult years, Lyon appear to have steadied the ship of late, with successive second-placed finish in Ligue 1 now on the cards.

Considering that PSG are a class above all due to their financial power, that has got to be considered an excellent achievement.

While experiencing some problems in the first part of the season, Lyon have been thoroughly impressive since the end of February.

It was the 2-1 triumph over leaders Paris Saint-Germain that changed everything, with the wins serving as a major confidence boost.

Lyon have since won another four games, while sharing spoils with Rennes, but they remain just two points clear of their next opponents.

Les Gones, however, have got to be considered favourites to win and they can be backed at 1.53 (8/15) to emerge victorious.

Mathieu Valbuena and Nabil Fekir have recovered from injury, but they have so far been restricted to substitute appearances, but Jeremy Morel, Guieda Fofana and Aldo Kalulu are unlikely to feature.

Probable starting line-up (4-3-3): Lopes – Jallet, Yanga-Mbiwa, Umtiti, Bedimo – Ferri, Gonalons, Darder – Ghezzal, Lacazette, Cornet.

OGC Nice have undergone a real renaissance under Claude Puel, but it was the arrival of Hatem Ben Arfa that turned les Aiglons into genuine top 3 contenders.

Eager to prove the doubters wrong after the disappointing spell in England, former Lyon starlet has led the team to unimagined heights, scoring amazing 16 goals in 29 league outings.

His teammates followed suit and helped Nice climb to fourth in the standings and they are now just one win away from climbing into Champions League positions.

In spite of the heavy loss to PSG, les Aiglons closed the gap behind their top 3 rivals with four wins in last five outings and they are now set for top of the table clash with Lyon.

There have been no fresh selection worries for Claude Puel, but Mathieu Bodmer, Mahamane Traore, Mickael Le Bihan, Remi Walter and Simon Pouplin continue to miss out.

Probable starting line-up (4-3-1-2): Cardinale – Pied, Baysse, Le Marchand, Pereira – Koziello, Mendy, Seri – Ben Arfa – Germain, Plea.