Ligue 1 Review Gameweek 10

There weren’t as many shock results as in previous weeks but Ligue 1 wasn’t short of entertainment in the tenth round of fixtures.

Monaco 1-1 Lyon

The first game of the weekend saw a result that wasn’t ideal for either side at the Stade Louis II. Monaco are still in 10^th place after conceding a late equaliser to Lyon who have fallen to 6^th in the league. Mario Pasalic opened the scoring for the home side shortly before half-time but they could have scored more if Lacina Traore and Thomas Lemar had taken their chances.

Lyon did begin to get back in the game but Mathieu Valbuena and Alexandre Lacazette failed to find a way past Danijel Subasic. The visitors were given hope of a comeback when Monaco were reduced to ten men; Wallace was sent off for a studs-up tackle just past the hour mark. It looked like Monaco were going to hold on but ex-Manchester United defender Rafael popped up with five minutes remaining to give Lyon a share of the points.

Bastia 0-2 Paris Saint-Germain

Zlatan Ibrahimovic struck again for PSG as they overcame a strong Bastia side. The first half was short of chances but Gael Danic came close for the home side as a run through on goal was thwarted by Salvatore Sirigu. Ibrahimovic thought he had broken the deadlock shortly after the interval when Edinson Cavani’s shot deflected off him into the net, but the Swedish international was judged to be offside.

It took Les Parisians 71 minutes to open the scoring when Cavani found Ibrahimovic to make it 1-0, although Cavani may have been offside as the ball was played through. Ibrahimovic sealed the points within the final ten minutes when he converted Serge Aurier’s cross to make it four consecutive wins for the second time this season for PSG. They are still unbeaten in the league and maintained their five-point lead at the top of the table while Bastia’s sixth defeat in seven games sees them fall to 15^th.

Guingamp 1-1 Lille

Lille failed to climb above Guingamp in the league standings on Saturday as they sit 13^th and 11^th respectively following the draw at the Stade du Roudourou. The visitors would usually see this game as one they should win but they have been inconsistent and out of character so far this season.

Both goals came within three minutes of each other in the first half as Lille’s Sofiane Boufal opened the scoring with a great effort to beat Jonas Lossl on the half-hour mark but this was cancelled out by Jimmy Briand moments later. Lille were pushing for a winner but their hopes of the three points faded away when Stoppila Sunzu was dismissed for a second bookable offence shortly before stoppage time.

Nantes 3-0 Troyes

Troyes’ search for a win continues as they remain 19^th in the league and are struggling to score goals, as well as conceding the most in the league with 19. Nantes however have put together back-to-back wins for the first time this season and they are looking stronger in 12^th place with a game to play. It took nearly the whole half to break the deadlock but it was certainly worth the wait as Valentin Rongier scored a contender for goal of the season when his effort flew into the top corner.

The next two goals came shortly after the restart; the second goal of the game was scored by Youssouf Sabaly whose shot somehow found a way past Denis Petric at his near post. The third came on the hour-mark and it was Yacine Bammou who sealed the victory when he capitalised on a defensive error to beat Petric and put the ball into an empty net. A win in their game in hand could put Nantes in a great position but it will be a tough task against in-form Nice.

Reims 0-1 Caen

Two sides who have performed well this season met at the Stade Auguste Delaune and it was no surprise that it only took one goal to separate Reims and Caen. The visitors could have taken the lead at an early stage in the game but Johnny Placide was on form in the Reims goal to keep it at 0-0.

Julien Feret scored the winner for Caen but it is Andy Delort who deserves the credit for the goal; his neat work allowed him to find time and pace to pick out Feret who slid the ball past Placide to give Caen a third successive victory. Reims have dropped down a place to 8^th but high-flying Caen are in 3^rd, just five points behind leaders PSG.

Saint-Étienne 2-0 Gazélec Ajaccio

Les Verts are back to winning ways with a straightforward victory over Gazélec. They are still seven points from the leaders but they have avoided a potential slip-up in this match following two defeats in the two games before. Robert Beric made the breakthrough for Saint-Étienne after just 20 minutes when he scored from a corner but the hosts failed to make anything of their chances for a large period of the game.

The second goal came in the 70^th-minute when Kevin Monnet-Paquet received the ball from Valentin Eysseric and fired home. This was Eysseric’s second assist of the match. Gazélec are still at the bottom of the table and are yet to win a game with seven defeats in their opening ten matches whereas Saint-Étienne are back to their usual selves in 4^th.

Toulouse 1-2 Angers

Angers are looking unstoppable at the moment and have stretched their winning streak to three with this 2-1 victory over Toulouse. The home side are still 17^th but have fallen closer to the relegation zone as Montpellier got a result this weekend. Angers had to work hard for their win as Toulouse took the lead mid-way through the first half through Oscar Trejo but the visitors bounced back in a fashion which doesn’t make them look like a newly promoted side.

It took just three minutes for a response as Cheikh Ndoye headed in an equaliser to improve on his tally for the season. Angers then silenced the crowd at the Stadium Municipal as they took the lead six minutes after the leveller; Abdoul Camara with a fine solo goal. The win keeps Angers 2^nd in Ligue 1 and there is a gap beginning to shape between them and the teams below them.

Marseille 1-1 Lorient

Marseille’s search for another win goes on as they find themselves in 16^th with five winless matches in a row after the disappointing draw with Lorient. Marseille were awarded a penalty to give them a chance to take the lead; Michy Batshuayi converted the spot-kick following Francois Bellugou’s handball.

Lorient would have fancied their chances going into this game as they had won four of their previous matches and knew they could take advantage of a disheartened Marseille team. They got back in the game when Benjamin Moukandjo reacted quickest from a long ball to stab the ball home to give his side a share of the spoils. This result sees Lorient in 9^th place; a great position going into the 11^th round of fixtures.

Bordeaux 0-0 Montpellier

Montpellier fought well to earn a point at the Nouveau Stade de Bordeaux despite being on the end of numerous attempts from the hosts. Montpellier’s Laurent Pionnier was able to keep a clean sheet but he has his defenders to thank as they made countless valiant blocks to prevent the ball getting through.

Nicolas Maurice-Belay, Adam Ounas and Henri Saivet were all denied and the final result left Bordeaux frustrated. Montpellier wasted their few chances but have moved a point closer to safety nonetheless. The visitors remain 18^th but Bordeaux have fallen to 14^th.

Rennes 1-4 Nice

Visitors Nice have continued their excellent run of form with a fourth successive win; scoring 17 goals in the process. They have moved up to 5^th and with a game in hand, they could move up to a good league position. Rennes have dropped to 8^th however as their eight-match unbeaten streak has come to an end. The visitors opened the scoring after a quarter of an hour through Mathieu Bodmer but they had to wait until the second half to extend their lead.

Hatem Ben Arfa was instrumental once again in this victory and he scored in the 53^rd-minute after some trickery gave him some space to fire the ball into the back of the net. Mahamane Traore and Said Benrahma completed the rout in the latter stages of the game to give Nice another emphatic victory. Rennes did score on the stroke of full-time as Kamil Grosicki earned nothing more than a consolation for the hosts.