Tag: Ligue 1

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NEYMAR SEES RED AS LILLE LEAPFROG PSG IN LIGUE 1

Lille leapfrogged Paris Saint-Germain to grab the lead in Ligue 1 on Saturday after Jonathan David found the back of the net in a 1-0 win over the French champions, who had Neymar sent off in the last minute.

Canada striker David scored in the first half to put the northerners on 66 points with seven games remaining, three ahead of PSG who were lacklustre throughout the showdown.

Neymar was sent off when he picked up a second yellow card for shoving Tiago Djalo, who reacted with a foul-mouthed rant and was also shown a red card.

Monaco moved up to third on 62 points with a 4-0 thrashing of promoted Metz.

Olympique Lyonnais, fourth on 60 points, take on fifth-placed RC Lens later on Saturday.

PSG have won seven of the last eight Ligue 1 titles, only finishing second behind Monaco in 2017, while Lille are looking to claim their first since 2011.

Lille, who were without Yusuf Yazici after the Turkey midfielder tested positive for COVID-19, defended thoroughly throughout and were the sharper side at the Parc des Princes to bag a deserved three points after two consecutive defeats in competitive matches.

PSG, who travel to Bayern Munich for their Champions League quarter-finals first leg on Wednesday, have now lost their last three home games in Ligue 1.

Neymar, in his first Ligue 1 start in over two months, found Kylian Mbappe early on with a defence-splitting pass, only for the French striker to see his low crossed shot parried away by Mike Maignan.

Lille went ahead on 20 minutes as David fired under the roof of the net from Jonathan Ikone’s cross after controlling the ball with a soft touch.

PSG struggled to create chances despite enjoying most of the possession and Lille threatened several times with lighting-quick counter attacks.

Neymar forced Maignan to a good save with a powerful half volley from just outside the box on the hour and he came close again in the 70th with a diving header that went just wide.

The Brazilian will, however, miss PSG’s next league game against Racing Strasbourg following his sending-off.

Earlier Monaco were on a class of their own against Metz, with penalties from Cesc Fabregas and Wissam Ben Yedder, who scored a double, and a goal by Kevin Volland, all after the break.

Coach Niko Kovac refused to get carried away, though.

“There are still 21 points at stake and we first need to secure fourth place,” he told a news conference.

“But we’re good. We have a good momentum.”

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PSG PUNISH LILLE ERRORS TO CRUISE TO FRENCH CUP LAST EIGHT.

Paris Saint-Germain cruised into the quarter-finals of the French Cup on Wednesday while striking a psychological blow in their pursuit of the Ligue 1 title, as they beat top-of-the-table Lille 3-0. It was the perfect response from PSG after their shock weekend home loss to struggling Nantes, which was overshadowed by thefts at the homes of Angel Di Maria and Marquinhos during the match. “We have had a difficult last few days, the players and their families,” said PSG manager Mauricio Pochettino. “Nobody is prepared for this kind of situation. The players did a great job to stay focused, their state of mind was extraordinary. Angel and Marquinhos felt good to play.”

In the first of two meetings between the teams at the Parc des Princes either side of the international break, the difference was a series of mistakes by Lille at key moments.

“It’s always the same, against Paris it’s in the zones of truth that it counts,” said Lille midfielder Benjamin Andre.

When Di Maria swung a low cross into the near post after nine minutes, Lille defender Tiago Djalo took a wild swing. Goalkeeper Mike Maignan lunged at the deflected ball, only pawing it towards his own goal. Mauro Icardi just needed to gather his wits before rolling into the empty net.

Icardi limped off on 36 minutes to be replaced by Kylian Mbappe, who had started on the bench.

Four minutes later, Mbappe meandered along the edge of the Lille penalty area until Zeki Celik took the bait, stuck out a knee and brought the striker down.

After outraged Lille protests, Mbappe smacked the spot-kick into the roof of the net.

“Our first half was timid, I think we watched them play a bit too much,” said Lille coach Christophe Galtier, who made clear he thought the referee had also had a bad first half.

“They have the control, the experience, they have the ability to put everyone to sleep, and when I say everyone, I mean everyone.”

Lille had a chance when they won a penalty of their own with 13 minutes to play, after Jeremy Pied’s cross from the byline struck Layvin Kurzawa’s outstretched hand.

Again Lille wavered as Keylor Navas dived to save Yusuf Yazici’s tame penalty.

“Keylor is one of the best goalkeepers in the world, his level is incredible,” said Pochettino.

Three minutes into added time, Djalo, on the halfway line, misjudged a PSG clearance. Mbappe pounced, raced away from the Lille defender and drilled the third past Maignan.

“We didn’t play a cup game,” said Galtier. “In the cup, at the end you either qualify or you’re out. The score may seem harsh, but we can’t compete with Paris if we only play one half.”

PSG, the defending champions, trail Lille by three points in Ligue 1 and a return date is on the horizon. After PSG visit third-place Lyon on Sunday while Lille host struggling Nimes, the pair meet again at the Parc des Princes after the international break.

“On April 3, it will be another approach, another competition,” said Pochettino. “We have Lyon on Sunday and then in the two weeks after that, we’ll have to recharge our batteries after these first two months of madness.”

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LIGUE 1: PSG STUMBLE TO HOME LOSS AGAINST NANTES

Paris Saint-Germain missed an opportunity to move top of the Ligue 1 standings when they suffered an embarrassing 2-1 home defeat against strugglers Nantes on Sunday.

Nantes’ Randal Kolo Muani cancelled out Julian Draxler’s first-half opener after a Kylian Mbappe blunder before Moses Simon scored in the 71st minute to stun the champions.

After their seventh league defeat of the season – the fourth at the Parc des Princes – PSG are second with 60 points from 29 games, three behind Lille who drew 0-0 at AS Monaco as none of the top four teams won at the weekend.

The result lifted relegation-threatened Nantes to 18th place on 27 points, a point below Lorient and the safety zone.

Four days after a lacklustre display in a Champions League draw with Barcelona in the last-16, where they progressed due to a big first-leg lead, PSG struggled again but Draxler opened the scoring three minutes from the break with a low shot.

Shortly before the hour, Nantes deservedly equalised as a poor pass by Mbappe virtually set up Kolo Muani, who beat goalkeeper Keylor Navas from close range.

After a brief discussion with PSG sports director Leonardo, coach Mauricio Pochettino replaced Angel Di Maria with Leandro Paredes after 62 minutes and went towards the dressing room with the Argentine before coming back to the bench.

In the 71st minute, Kolo Muani set up Simon, who rifled home to put the visitors ahead.

It finally spurred PSG into action, but Alban Laffont made a couple of good saves to preserve Nantes’s advantage until the final whistle.

Earlier, Lille’s seven-game winning streak on the road ended when they failed to break the deadlock at Monaco in a 0-0 encounter at Louis II.

Monaco and Lille failed to create decent chances, until Stevan Jovetic was denied by Lille keeper Mike Maignan’s superb save in stoppage time.

Monaco are fourth on 56 points, four behind PSG and third-placed Olympique Lyonnais, who were held to a 1-1 draw at Stade de Reims on Friday.

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LIGUE 1: MBAPPE BRACE HELP PSG THRASH DIJON

The French top-flight’s leading marksman Kylian Mbappe scored twice as Paris Saint-Germain routed rock-bottom Dijon 4-0 to move up to second place in Ligue 1.

Saturday’s win has moved PSG just a point behind leaders Lille and two points ahead of Lyon, who both play on Sunday.

Moise Kean gave visiting PSG the perfect start after five minutes. Mbappe and defender Abdou Diallo combined down the left to find the Italy striker, who shifted the ball onto his right foot in the penalty area and squeezed it inside the right post.

Mbappe then netted a penalty in the 32nd minute following a handball, converting the fifth of five that he has taken this season.

Five minutes after the break, Mbappe clipped the ball into the bottom left corner for his 18th goal of the season after neatly being set up by Rafinha.

Centre-back Danilo headed home the fourth from a corner late on.

Elsewhere, Metz hit two late goals to win at Bordeaux 2-1 with a last-minute goal from Cape Verdean forward Vagner.

Metz’s improvement under coach Frederic Antonetti continued as they rose to fifth place, while Bordeaux’s fifth defeat in six games left them mired in mid-table.

Striker Samuel Kalu put Bordeaux ahead in the 13th from Youssouf Sabaly’s cross.

After defender Thomas Delaine equalised in the 71st with a fine curling shot from the left, Vagner met Thierry Ambrose’s cross at the back post.

On Sunday, Lille, who are one point clear at the top, face lowly Strasbourg while Monaco look to make it 12 league games unbeaten when they host Brest.

Niko Kovac’s Monaco side has not lost since mid-December and comfortably won at PSG at 2-0 last weekend.

Lyon, who visit Marseille, will move top on goal difference if they win and Lille lose.

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LIGUE 1: GOLOVIN HITS HATRICK IN MONACO GOAL THRILLER WIN, DAVID’S DOUBLE HELP LILLE GO TOP.

Jonathan David’s red-hot form continued as the LOSC forward scored both goals for the leaders at Raymond Domenech’s struggling Nantes. David has hit form at just the right time for LOSC’s title chances, his purple patch coinciding with Burak Yilmaz’s injury.

David, who didn’t net his first Lille goal until November, has now scored five in his last five outings. His first (9′) saw him slam the ball past Alban Lafont after a defensive mix-up and the Canadian international added a second with his left foot on the break (83′), set up by Renato Sanches. Lille have won their last six league matches and are not going away at the summit, while Nantes have now gone 15 games without a maximum haul.
NANTES 0-2 LILLE


Golovin, the Russian international, has been superb since returning from injury and he scored a fabulous hat-trick to ensure Niko Kovac’s side’s winning run continued at the start of 2021. Golovin added an assist to his triple salvo in a match that Nîmes made difficult for Monaco without being able to prevent the Principality club recording a seventh win of 2021.

After Golovin had scored two (3′ and 12′), Zinedine Ferhat inspired Nîmes’ comeback, setting up the first for Lucas Deaux (23′) and scoring the second (32′). Golovin’s fantastic free-kick (62′) put Monaco ahead again before Golovin turned provider for Kevin Volland (78′). Niclas Eliasson (81′) ensured there would be a nervy finish.
NIMES 3-4 MONACO


Gaêtan Laborde scored twice as Montpellier ended their winless streak at nine matches. Téji Savanier and sub Petr Skuletic scored the other Montpellier goals in a match in which Dijon scored first through Senou Coulibaly. Coulibaly was sent off for a second yellow card in the second half.
MONTPELLIER 4-2 DIJON


After eight home games without a win, Nice finally came good at Allianz Riviera. They were sent on their way by a Souleyman Doumbia own goal, with Myziane Maolida and Amine Gouiri adding the gloss to the scoreline.
NICE 3-0 ANGERS


ASSE made it seven points from three games as they beat high-flying Metz. Romain Hamoula’s free-kick was tipped onto the post by Alexandre Oukidja and the luckless John Boye ended up scoring the own goal that decided the match. SAINT-ETIENNE 1-0 METZ

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MBAPPE’S LONG RANGE EFFORT CAPS PSG RETURN TO WINNING WAYS.

Paris Saint-Germain returned to winning ways in Ligue 1 with a 3-0 victory over bottom side Nimes at the Parc des Princes on Wednesday.

The champions suffered a shock 3-2 loss to lowly Lorient on Sunday – their first defeat under Mauricio Pochettino – but responded with a comfortable victory on home soil.

Star man Angel Di Maria profited from a terrible Lamine Fomba error to open the scoring and then crossed for Pablo Sarabia to add a second before half-time.

Kylian Mbappe scored a stunning third goal for PSG, who were without the suspended Neymar, but they remain third in the table as leaders Lille and second-place Lyon also triumphed.

Moise Kean clipped the outside of the post with a header from 10 yards but PSG were ahead seven minutes later through Di Maria’s composed finish.

Nimes midfielder Fomba played the ball straight to Di Maria’s feet and the Argentina international fired away from Baptiste Reynet after teeing himself up.

The home side nearly had a second soon after when Presnel Kimpembe headed a corner back across goal and Thilo Kehrer turned it against the underside of the crossbar.

But Sarabia did manage to double his team’s tally nine minutes before the interval, heading Di Maria’s right-sided cross into the bottom-right corner from five yards.

Fomba was denied by Sergio Rico as he tried to make amends for his earlier error, while Anthony Briancon and Renaud Ripart also had attempts saved by the stand-in PSG keeper.

Nimes continued to ask questions of their opponents but the game was put out of their reach by Mbappe, who curled a shot past a stranded Reynet to seal the win.

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AVB OFFERS MARSEILLE RESIGNATION AFTER OLIVIER NTCHAM SIGNING


Marseille manager Andre Villas-Boas has offered to resign as the club’s manager after the board went against his wishes and signed Olivier Ntcham.

In his press conference ahead of the Ligue 1 fixture against Lens tomorrow, Villas-Boas said: “I just want to leave Marseille.”
He feels that the signing did not fit the profile of what he was looking for and that the board went against his wishes by persisting with the transfer.

He said: “I have resigned because I don’t agree with the sporting policy of the club. I said no to the signing of Olivier Ntcham. He wasn’t on our list.

“Even for [the exit of] Nemanja Radonjic, I was told at the last moment. I don’t want anything from the club, I don’t want their money.

“I just want to leave. If the answer is no… Well, we’ll keep going.

“I love the club and I love Marseille, but you can’t touch my professionalism.

When I’m offered a guy who has nothing to do with the profile I’m looking for… No. I do not agree with the sporting policy.”

It’s been a difficult time of late for one of France’s most successful teams.

With one win in their last nine matches, they sit ninth in the table and recorded a dismal group stage in the Champions League, winning just once in their six games and finishing bottom.

Fans of the club stormed the training ground last week in protest and there were violent clashes with police officers during the events – defender Alvaro Gonzalez was also reportedly hit on the back with a projectile. It led to their match against Rennes the next day to be postponed.

If Villas-Boas is granted his wish and leaves the club, it could plunge Marseille into further trouble for the remainder of the season.

Dithering in mid-table is not what fans have come to expect of the club and cutting ties with the manager who secured them second spot in the league and a return to the Champions League may, in the long run, have further negative effects on the club.

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PSG BEAT ANGERS TO GO TOP OF LIGUE 1 TABLE; MARSEILLE SUFFER DEFEAT

A rare Layvin Kurzawa goal was enough for Paris Saint-Germain to beat Angers 1-0 on Saturday and go top of Ligue 1 despite coach Mauricio Pochettino testing positive for Covid-19 before the game. Kurzawa scored with 20 minutes left at the Stade Raymond Kopa to send PSG provisionally two points clear of Lyon, who will have the chance to reclaim first place when they host Metz on Sunday.

Assistants Jesus Perez and Miguel D’Agostino took charge of the PSG side with Pochettino having to self-isolate after the announcement on Friday that he had contracted the virus.

The Argentine’s positive test followed those of three Paris players — Brazilian Rafinha, Germany’s Thilo Kehrer and French Under-21 international Colin Dagba — in the last week.

“It was a very difficult match. Angers are a very well organised team,” said Perez, the Spaniard who also worked for Pochettino at Espanyol, Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur.

“We were in contact with Mauricio. He spoke to the players before the match via video at the hotel.

“We spoke before the match, at half-time and just afterwards. We will of course be in contact during the week.

We already know what we will be doing in training. Of course it’s not the same without him, but we have been working together for eight years so we know what we need to put the emphasis on.”

Neymar made his return to the starting line-up in Angers for the first time since suffering an ankle injury in a defeat to Lyon a month ago.

With Kylian Mbappe and Angel di Maria also starting behind Moise Kean in attack, it was a strong Parisian line-up but they appeared to play within themselves against an Angers side who sit seventh.

The home team even almost went ahead early in the second half when a Lois Diony diving header from close range was well saved by Keylor Navas.

Stephane Bahoken also saw an attempt deflected over before PSG broke through.

Alessandro Florenzi’s cross from the right was inadvertently helped on by Angers defender Romain Thomas for Kurzawa, arriving from left-back, to score his first goal in almost a year with a first-time cushioned volley at the back post.

Before Lyon play on Sunday night, third-placed Lille can also go level on points again with PSG if they beat Reims.

Meanwhile Marseille’s hopes of staying in the title race were dealt another blow earlier on Saturday as Florian Thauvin missed a penalty in a shock 2-1 home defeat by struggling Nimes.

France World Cup winner Thauvin sent a woeful spot-kick wide in the first half and Swedish winger Niclas Eliasson then converted twice from close range after the break to give the away side an unassailable lead behind closed doors at the Velodrome.

Argentine forward Dario Benedetto pulled one back late on for Andre Villas-Boas’s side but this result left them with just one win in six Ligue 1 games.

Marseille are sixth in the league, now 10 points behind leaders PSG, albeit still with two games in hand.

“We risk losing touch with the teams at the top, who are more consistent than us,” said Villas-Boas.

“We were very bad and we paid an expensive price for it. We can’t go from playing well against Paris to a miserable match like today.”

Nimes move off the foot of the table after their first win in nine, but they remain in the bottom three.

The two sides below them, Lorient and Dijon, had their clash set for Sunday postponed after a Covid-19 outbreak at the Brittany club.

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NEYMAR STARS ON RETURN FROM INJURY AS POCHETTINO WINS FIRST TROPHY AS PSG MANAGER

Neymar scored on his return to action for Paris Saint-Germain as they beat arch rivals Marseille 2-1 to win this season’s Champions Trophy.

The Brazilian rolled home an 85th minute penalty to put PSG two goals ahead following Mauro Icardi’s first-half opener to give new coach Mauricio Pochettino the first trophy of his reign in the French capital, and managerial career.

The Champions Trophy is the French equivalent of a Super Cup, usually contested at the start of the season by the league champions and French Cup winners.

With PSG winning both last season, Marseille had been selected as their opponents as the Ligue 1 runners-up. This season’s edition was delayed because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Hopes were high for a feisty tussle in Lens after Marseille’s league win at PSG in September ended with five red cards and Neymar accusing Marseille centre back Alvaro Gonzalez of racism in the aftermath.

However it was a largely tame encounter in northern France, with the most noteworthy incident being substitute Neymar’s goalscoring return after a month away.

The 28-year-old hadn’t featured for the French champions since being stretchered off with an ankle injury during a 1-0 defeat to current league leaders Lyon on December 13.

Icardi thought he had given PSG the lead with a 22nd minute tap-in, only to have the goal ruled out for offside after Kylian Mbappe strayed past Marseille’s back line to collect Leandro Paredes’ defence-splitting pass.

Seven minutes later it was Mbappe’s turn to have a goal chalked off when he started his run too early to connect with a long pass from his captain Marquinhos.

Icardi finally put dominant PSG ahead six minutes before the break with a goal typical of his poacher’s style, first meeting Angel Di Maria’s raking long ball with a close-range header that Steven Mandanda pushed onto the post.

The Argentine was quickest to follow up as the ball dribbled back out from the goal, and he tapped in his second goal is as many games since returning from injury.

He almost doubled his side’s lead in first half stoppage time when he hit a left-footed strike back off the crossbar.

Neymar returned to action in the 65th minute and was immediately targeted by Gonzalez, the Argentine fouling the superstar attacker several times in what looked like a continuation of the pair’s spat.

However it was Neymar who had the last laugh when he stepped up to score the decisive second goal for PSG from the penalty spot after Icardi was brought down by Marseille’s substitute keeper Yohann Pele.

Dimitri Payet pulled one back for Marseille with a minute remaining but it was too little too late for Andre Villas-Boas’ side.

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FRENCH LIGUE 1: PSG DRAW IN POCHETTINO’S FIRST GAME, LYON AND MARSEILLE WIN.

Mauricio Pochettino’s first game in charge of Paris Saint-Germain ended in a tame 1-1 draw at Saint-Etienne on Wednesday as leader Lyon moved three points clear by beating Lens 3-2 at home.

Lyon made it 15 games unbeaten with Memphis Depay scoring twice, but PSG still jumped up to second place on goal difference because Lille lost 2-1 at home to Angers.

“I am disappointed. We are PSG and we wanted to win,” said Pochettino, who replaced Thomas Tuchel after he was fired late last month. “This is not the result that we wanted.”

Pochettino’s tenure got off to a bad start when veteran winger Romain Hamouma put Saint-Etienne ahead in the 19th minute, after PSG midfielder Idrissa Gueye lost the ball near the penalty area.

It was the 100th league goal Hamouma has been involved in, with 57 goals and 43 assists.

Striker Moise Kean equalized soon after when he was teed up by midfielder Marco Verratti.

Kean then shot over the bar with 20 minutes left, just moments after Saint-Etienne striker Denis Bouanga headed against the woodwork.

Lyon totally dominated the first half against Lens and Depay made the breakthrough in the 39th, when he latched onto a defence-splitting pass from midfielder Lucas Paqueta and finished confidently.

It took Lyon less than one minute to double its lead following the break, when a cross from right back Leo Dubois led to a clumsy own goal from defender Steven Fortes.

Maxwell Cornet was then fouled in the box when put clean through by the impressive Paqueta, and Depay converted his sixth penalty of the campaign from a short run up in the 52nd.

Florian Sotoca pulled a fine goal back with a curler into the top right corner, and Cheick Doucoure ensured a nervy finish with a late second goal for Lens.

“Everyone thought it was going to be an easy win for us, but I was worried this would be a difficult game,” Lyon coach Rudi Garcia said. “But our unbeaten run continues and I congratulate the players for that.”

In northern France, Lille was 2-0 down after 11 minutes against Angers, with midfielder Romain Thomas grabbing both, before veteran Turkey striker Burak Yilmaz pulled one back in the 41st.

Marseille Wins

Marseille may now think twice about sending winger Nemanja Radonjic out on loan as planned.

He made the most of a rare start when he headed in Florian Thauvin’s cross close to halftime.

Montpellier is one of the league’s best away sides and midfielder Florent Mollet made it 1-1.

But Marseille’s substitutes made the difference as playmaker Dimitri Payet — surprisingly left on the bench — and Valere Germain netted in the last 10 minutes.

Although Marseille is in fifth place, it has played two games fewer than the top four sides.

Other Matches.

Aleksandr Golovin came off the bench and scored straight away as sixth-place Monaco won 5-2 at struggling Lorient.

The skilful Russia midfielder, who has been out since September with a thigh injury, struck midway through the second half with a fine curling shot from outside the penalty area following a corner.

Striker Ludovic Ajorque netted twice in Strasbourg’s 5-0 win against last-place Nimes.

Also, it was: Brest 2-0 Nice; Nantes 0-0 Rennes; Metz 0-0 Bordeaux; and Reims 0-0 Dijon.