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Toulouse reach maiden Coupe de France final after beating second-tier Annecy

Chris Wilson
Toulouse celebrate a goal
Toulouse celebrate a goalAFP
Toulouse left it late to book their spot in their first-ever Coupe de France final, with substitute Fares Chaibi (20) securing a 2-1 win against Ligue 2 Annecy to set up a date with Nantes.

For second-tier Annecy, this was always likely to be an uphill battle, but it was in fact the minnows who started brighter and could count themselves slightly unlucky not to have taken an early lead.

Both Steve Shamal and Yohan Demoncy tried their luck for Annecy, but the dynamic duo were thwarted by Kjetil Haug as you sensed those saves could be game-defining.

So it proved shortly before the break, as Toulouse asserted their authority on the game when Branco van den Boomen’s deep cross was powered home by Zakaria Aboukhlal.

Despite the league gulf between these two sides, Annecy weren’t fazed and hit back almost instantly, albeit in rather fortuitous circumstances.

Alexy Bosetti was adjudged to have been felled by Gabriel Suazo in the area, and despite there being more than a hint of fortune about the decision, it was upheld by VAR and Bosetti dusted himself off to step forward and equalise.

That goal rocked Toulouse a little bit, and the Ligue 1 side looked a little ropey after the break, gifting possession high up the pitch to Shamal, but he failed to capitalise.

Considering the wealth of options Toulouse had at their disposal, they were severely lacking firepower in the final third, with centre-back Rasmus Nicolaisen coming close to finding a breakthrough when his header crashed back off the bar.

That only served as a temporary reprieve for Annecy though, as with five minutes left on the clock, they eventually caved when Chaibi popped up with what proved to be the winning goal.

They did have to survive a nervy ending though, with Moise Sahi popping up with a stunning strike in stoppage time, only for the offside flag to cut short his joy as Toulouse held on to secure their safe passage to the final at the Stade de France on April 29th.

Flashscore Man of the Match: Rasmus Nicolaisen (Toulouse)