A bitterly cold night in Niort [3-1]

The Girondins started well, clearly dominating the first ten minutes. But the hosts gradually worked their way into the game, and Olaitan Ishola rattle a shot off the post (19’). Ten minutes later, Zemzemi fired Niort into the lead (28’, 1-0). Fortunately Bordeaux were able to respond in kind immediately, with Dilane Bakwa picking out Aliou Badji with a long ball. The Girondins forward controlled the ball magnificently, holding his nerve to slot home the equaliser (30’, 1-1).

This goal galvanised the Girondins, who now created a series of chances for Josh Maja (35’) and Zuriko Davitashvili (42’). But Bordeaux were caught out at the worst possible time, when Passi pounced with a header just before the half-time whistle. (45+2’, 2-1)

David Guion's men returned to the pitch determined to level the scores again, but Niort keeper Mathieu Michel was on stellar form this evening: he caught Josh Maja's attempted lob, then timed his dive perfectly to stop Fransergio's powerful drive (61’). Both sides threw everything they had into the last fifteen minutes, with Niort defending tooth and nail to resist Bordeaux's persistent attacks.

The Girondins kept pushing until the very end, with Marvin De Lima (82’) and Danylo Ignatenko (90+2’) both coming within millimetres of levelling the scores. Ultimately, the ruthless pragmatism and heroic defending of the hosts were rewarded. Olaitan Ishola put the game to bed in injury time, with a well-placed lob for Niort's third goal (90+3’, 3-1). The icing on the cake of a bitterly disappointing night for Bordeaux. The Girondins will be desperate to bounce back from this defeat immediately, when they host Paris FC next Saturday (18 February) at the Matmut ATLANTIQUE, kick-off 3pm.