Vannes stun Nice to reach fairytale League Cup final

Second-division Vannes qualified for the final of the French League Cup after upsetting top-flight Nice 4-3 on penalties in their semi-final here on Wednesday evening.

Vannes, playing in the competition for the first time in their history, will meet either cup holders Paris Saint Germain or Bordeaux in the final at Paris’s Stade de France on April 25.

Stephane Le Mignan’s men were largely untroubled at Nice’s Stade Principal du Ray, with a David Hellebuyck free-kick that struck the crossbar in the 38th minute the nearest the home side came to opening the scoring.

On-loan Valenciennes striker Seid Khiter put Vannes in front on the hour mark, and it looked likely to take the underdogs into the final until Tunisian midfielder Chaouki Ben Saada, on as a second-half substitute, equalised for Nice with only two minutes of normal time remaining.

Extra-time held no fear for the second division side, who also went the distance against Amiens in round two, Valenciennes in round three and Metz in the quarter-finals.

Goalkeeper Christophe Revel emerged as the hero in the shootout, with Vannes becoming only the second second-tier team after Guegnon in 2002 to make the final of the French League Cup.