Ligue 1 Review Gameweek 5

Toulouse 2-2 Reims

One of the more surprising results of the weekend was at the Stadium Municipal, where Reims were held to a 2-2 draw with a struggling Toulouse. The home side will be the sorrier of the two after letting a two goal lead slip; three points they could have really done with to boost their season. Goals from Jean-Armel Kana-Biyik and Martin Braithwaite within two minutes of each other ensured Toulouse would enter the break 2-0 up.

Reims came out stronger in the second half and began to play like the team which has been more dominant in Ligue 1 so far. Youngster Theoson Siebatcheu impressed yet again from the bench when he offered his side hope, firing in a goal just six minutes after coming on. The visitors levelled just ten minutes from time when Frederic Bulot’s fine effort proved too much for Mauro Goicoechea to keep out. The point keeps Reims in the top three while Toulouse are pushed further towards the bottom three as they remain 16^th in the standings.

Troyes 1-3 Caen

Caen cruised to another victory to move them up to 5^th in the table, despite playing the majority of the second half with ten men. Julien Feret capitalised on a defensive error in the 21^st-minute before lobbing the ball over Dennis Petric to give his side the lead. Ben Youssef strengthened Caen’s lead not long after when he headed in a second before receiving a second yellow card after half-time, leaving his side to see out the game with a player short.

This didn’t seem to affect the visitors however as Vincent Bessat secured all three points in the 62^nd-minute. Quentin Othon did pull a goal back for Troyes in injury time but it was too late for the hosts to spark any sort of a comeback. Troyes’ miseries continue to grow as they are still in search of their first win, have the worst defence in the league and have now fallen into the bottom three.

Gazélec Ajaccio 0-1 Monaco

Monaco took all three points at the Stade Ange Casanova, although it was far from a comfortable victory. It was just a Fabinho penalty that separated the teams after the referee spotted a handball in the box in just the 16^th-minute.

Gazélec will feel unfortunate not to get anything out of the game having posing a number of problems for Monaco. The hosts dominated the statistics with possession and a number of shots and corners, but Monaco’s goal ensured Gazélec remain bottom of the table without a win or a goal this season. It may have been another disappointing result for the home side but they can take a number of positives from the game against a strong Monaco team who have moved up to 8^th with their second win of the campaign.

Nantes 0-2 Rennes

Another impressive victory ensured Ligue 1 in-form side Rennes continue their run with a fourth successive win. They move up to 2^nd in the league, just one point below PSG who dropped points against Bordeaux. Nantes were the masters of their own downfall in this match as they finished the game with nine men; Adryan was sent off in the 52^nd-minute and Kolbeinn Sigthorsson in the 78^th.

Rennes took advantage of Nantes’ lack of discipline as Paul Georges Ntep scored on his first start for the side just ten minutes after the first red card was issued. Giovanni Sio secured the win late on when he broke through the Nantes defence to slot home. Regardless of their unbeaten opening three games, Nantes have lost the last two and have dropped to 10^th in the league.

Marseille 4-1 Bastia

Marseille are up and running yet again with another emphatic win; this time against a Bastia side who started the season very well. The home side were on the front foot from the beginning and broke the deadlock after just fifteen minutes when Benjamin Mendy scored with a fierce attempt. Romain Alessandrini scored two goals in the second half with a neat dribble for his first, before an effort which flew into the bottom corner for his second goal of the game.

Michy Batshuayi put the game well and truly out of reach of Bastia in the 70^th-minute and Brandao netted a mere consolation against his former club in the latter stages. The win takes Marseille up to 11^th place in the league, just a point behind Bastia in 9^th.