Lens Secures Historic French Cup Victory
On Friday, Lens clinched their first-ever French Cup with a 3-1 victory over Nice at the Stade de France. Florian Thauvin, who played in the 2018 World Cup-winning team, scored one goal and set up another for Odsonne Edouard.
Nice managed to score one back through Djibril Coulibaly’s first senior goal just before halftime. However, Lens sealed their win with a goal from substitute Abdallah Sima in the 78th minute.
This triumph marks an impressive campaign for the northern France club, who under new coach Pierre Sage finished second in Ligue 1 to dominant Paris Saint-Germain and qualified for next season’s Champions League.
The victory was celebrated by the vast majority of the near-capacity crowd inside the 80,000-seat Stade de France. Nice fans were notably absent, reflecting their team’s poor performance this season, which saw them finish third-bottom in Ligue 1.
Thauvin and Edouard both netted 14 goals during the season, with Thauvin setting up Edouard for his goal. Coulibaly’s goal was followed by a miss on the woodwork, adding to Lens’ woes.
Lens is now the fifth different winner of the French Cup in the last eight editions, with Rennes, Nantes, Toulouse, and PSG also lifting the trophy during this period. The club plans to continue their celebrations with an open-top bus tour scheduled for Saturday afternoon.