Riding the high of their recent resurgence and back-to-back league victories, Metz started brightly as they looked for the win that could’ve elevated them out of the bottom three.
They had their first real sight of goal in the game when Cheikh Sabaly was played in on the right side of the box, but in trying to pick out the near top corner, he drilled the ball just over the bar.
The visitors took some time to grow into the game, but Mohamed-Ali Cho looked particularly dangerous as he curled one just wide of the far post. Ultimately, it was Cho who scored the opener, 10 minutes before the break.
Charles Vanhoutte’s pass found him on the edge of the area, albeit with his back to goal, but the young forward managed to swivel and shoot in one motion to pick out the top corner with a fantastic finish.
Although the hosts couldn’t force an equaliser before half-time, they were given the chance to level from the spot shortly after the restart when Juma Bah was penalised for a shirt pull, and Gauthier Hein dispatched the penalty into the bottom corner.
In an even contest, it looked like the home side had been given their second penalty of the half when Habib Diallo and Antoine Mendy tangled in the box as referee Stephanie Frappart initially pointed to the spot, yet she quickly changed her mind and gave the free-kick to Nice instead.
Just when it looked like the game was drifting towards a draw, Habib Diallo showed persistence and quality to keep going after a poor touch to break in behind the Nice defence before lifting the ball high into the net on 84 minutes.
There was still time for home nerves to be shredded as Frappart pointed for a Nice penalty in the final minute of normal time, but a VAR review showed the ball was nowhere near Giorgi Tsitaishvili’s hand and the decision was overturned, leaving the hosts to see the game out.
Having taken just two points from their opening nine league fixtures, Metz are now out of the relegation zone as the three points lift them up to 14th. Nice, on the other hand, have lost their last three games in all competitions and miss the chance to move into the top six.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Gauthier Hein (Metz)