Nice ensured they retained their Ligue 1 status as Elye Wahi's late double sealed an emphatic 4-1 win over Saint-Etienne in the second leg of their relegation play-off. 

Jonathan Clauss had put Nice ahead just after the hour with a brilliant finish, only for Zuriko Davitashvili's penalty to restore parity at Allianz Riviera 11 minutes from time. 

But with extra-time looming, three goals in 11 minutes late on by substitute Boudache and Wahi sealed the win for Claude Puel's side, who avoided relegation to the second tier. 

Nice weathered an early storm and almost took the lead when Mohamed-Ali Cho's deflected shot dropped to Wahi, but his attempt on the slide clipped against the right post. 

Gautier Larsonneur then made two excellent stops at the end of the first half to deny Dante's header from point-blank range before getting down to repel Antoine Mendy.  

It was then Saint-Etienne's turn to hit the woodwork nine minutes after the restart through Lucas Stassin, and the hosts made the most of their reprieve in the 61st minute. 

A long throw into the box was not dealt with by the Saint-Etienne defence, with the loose ball finding its way to Clauss, who rifled a fierce strike in at Larsonneur's near post. 

But Saint-Etienne hauled themselves level when Mendy handled the ball in the area, with Davitashvili tucking away the spot-kick, but the visitors' joy instantly turned into despair. 

Just under two minutes later, Boudache curled the ball into the bottom-left corner from the edge of the box, before Wahi collected Tom Louchet's pass to score brilliantly. 

However, Nice and Wahi were not done there. With Saint-Etienne looking to find a way back into the game, they were caught out on the break in second-half stoppage time, with Wahi racing clear and dinking over Larsonneur to seal the victory.

Data Debrief: Nice stop the rot at a crucial time

In what had been an underwhelming Ligue 1 season for Nice, they produced a fine display when it mattered most, while also ending a seven-game winless run at home in all competitions (D5 L2) in the process. 

Following a goalless first leg where there was a lack of quality in the final third, the story was much different here. Nice finished with an expected goals (xG) total of 3.54 from their 20 attempts, compared to Saint-Etienne's tally of 2.16 from their 13 shots. 

And having passed up some glorious chances before getting himself on the scoresheet, Wahi was the standout. He ended with team-high totals for shots (eight), touches in the opposition box (nine) and big chances (four), and his influence was key in ensuring Nice would compete in Ligue 1 for the 25th consecutive campaign.