ANGERS, France (Interstat) — Substitute Elye Wahi scored a stoppage-time goal to seal a 2-0 victory for Nice over Angers in a Ligue 1 match Saturday at Stade Raymond Kopa, defying a pregame projection that had favored the home side.

The match, played on March 14, 2026, was a tightly contested affair for over an hour before Nice’s substitutes made the decisive impact. The visitors’ victory handed Angers a loss in its opening match of the French top-flight season, while Nice began its campaign with a win.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a 1-1 draw, and its ELO rating system gave Nice only a slight edge with a 50.90 percent probability to win. The actual result, however, was a clear and late-breaking triumph for the visiting side.

The first half and much of the second produced few clear chances, with both teams struggling to break down organized defenses. The physical tone of the match was reflected in the booking of Angers defender Ousmane Camara in the 50th minute for a foul.

The deadlock was finally broken in the 65th minute, and it was another substitute who provided the spark. After entering the match, Melvin Bard found space on the left side and finished clinically to put Nice ahead 1-0. The assist on the opening goal was credited to Kevin Omoruyi, who had also come off the bench and was shown a yellow card just five minutes before his key contribution.

Angers, pushing for an equalizer, saw its task grow more difficult when Nice’s Abdulai Juma Bah received a yellow card in the 80th minute as part of the visitors’ determined effort to protect their lead. The home side’s frustration mounted as the clock ticked into added time.

Nice sealed the victory in the sixth minute of stoppage time. A swift counterattack, initiated by goalkeeper Yehvann Diouf, who was later booked in the 94th minute, cut through the Angers defense. The move involved Bah, who redeemed his earlier caution with an assist, feeding a pass to Camara. The Angers defender, despite his earlier booking, turned provider for the opposition, setting up Wahi for a simple finish to double the lead and clinch the three points.

The result underscored the impact of Nice’s bench, with all five key statistical contributions — two goals and three assists — coming from substitutes. Wahi’s goal, assisted by the unlikely source of Angers’ Camara, was the final blow in a match that statistically appeared even but finished decisively in Nice’s favor.

With the victory, Nice opens its Ligue 1 season with a win and no losses, while Angers starts with a loss and no wins. Both teams carry those identical records across all competitions for the young season. The performance will provide a confidence boost for Nice, which outperformed its pregame metrics, while Angers will look to regroup after a home opener where it kept the match close but was ultimately undone by its opponent’s depth and efficiency in the final moments.