Ligue 1 Review Gameweek 16

Just eight points now separate the relegation zone from the top six as the Ligue 1 table gets even closer; there were much needed wins for the bottom sides while the surprise packages at the top pick up some great results.

Angers 0-0 Paris Saint-Germain

PSG were denied a tenth win in a row by a resilient Angers at the Stade Jean Bouin. This was a fantastic point for the newly promoted side, who remain 3^rd in the table, 15 points behind PSG at the top of the league. The hosts could rely on their goalkeeper when needed as Ludovic Butelle pulled off a number of good saves, the best of which being from Adrien Rabiot. Les Parisians did come very close to breaking the deadlock; Edinson Cavani rose highest early on but could only direct his header onto the woodwork. Shortly after, Butelle’s fine goalkeeping prevented Serge Aurier from scoring the opener.

Angers needed half-time to arrive, especially after Angel Di Maria cut in on his favoured left foot to strike the Angers’ post for the second time in the match. They ended the half the better of the two teams however, Giles Sunu saw his effort blocked before Roman Saiss saw his looping header come back off the crossbar, with Kevin Trapp beaten. They came out on top early in the second period when Cheikh Ndoye forced a save from Trapp, but PSG began to assert dominance again. Lucas Moura, Maxwell and Cavani all came close to scoring, but in the end they were lucky to hold on after seeing Arnold Bouka Moutou come off the bench for Angers to nearly grab a winner. His effort may have gone wide, but it didn’t stop the home fans from celebrating a great result.

Lorient 0-0 Nice

Nice failed to take advantage of the teams above them dropping points, as a win against Lorient would have taken them into the Champions League positions, however they remain 5^th. It was Nice who had the better of the chances but the hosts have proved difficult to beat recently; drawing five of their last seven games.

Benjamin Lecomte was at hand to prevent Wallyson Mallman’s free kick getting past him and Paul Baysse also came close to opening the scoring for the visitors. Yoan Cardinale was also playing well in the Nice goal as he had to be alert when Lorient launched an attack themselves. It was a game for the goalkeepers to shine but both sides will feel as though they could have done more to get the three points. The point leaves Lorient in 9^th as they failed to close the gap on Nice.

Nantes 0-0 Lyon

Tuesday’s third and final match was yet another goalless draw, between Nantes and Lyon. Les Gones also missed out on the chance to move into the Ligue 1 top three but this will be a very well-received point for Nantes. Both sides were without their first team goalkeepers, Remy Riou for Nantes and Anthony Lopes for Lyon, but ironically Maxime Dupe and Mathieu Gorgelin both kept clean sheets. Les Canaris started the better of the two with Emiliano Sala wasting a huge opportunity to score, instead his header didn’t even trouble Gorgelin.

Lyon did have a threatening spell where Maxime Gonalons struck the crossbar, before Claudio Beauvue saw his attempt from range saved by Dupe. Looking back on the game Nantes should have taken all three points, and could have with all the late chances. Ermir Lenjani came close, forcing a great save from Gorgelin and Jules Iloki actually found the net, but his celebrations were halted by the offside flag. Yacine Bammou could have won it for the home side right at the death, but another game without a goal keeps Nantes in 11^th place. Lyon however remain 4^th and can count themselves fortunate as no-one in the top eight won.

Bastia 1-0 Bordeaux

Bastia’s late winner prevented another goalless draw in this round of Ligue 1 fixtures and produced something interesting to talk about in this game of few chances. It was an uneventful encounter at the Stade Armand Cesari, with neither side offering very much in front of goal.

The hosts had the best opportunities of the game in the second half, but Brandao and Floyd Ayite failed to make the best of them. On reflection Bastia deserved to win the game against a very uninspiring Bordeaux and they got their reward in the 88^th-minute through Florian Raspentino. He was in the right place to capitalize on an Ilias Hassani slip to earn his side a much-needed three points. The victory takes Bastia up to 16^th in the league, while Bordeaux are one place behind and one point above the relegation zone, which piles the pressure on Willy Sagnol and Les Girondins.

Guingamp 1-2 Reims

Reims ended a seven-game streak without a win with a victory at Guingamp, and it was a much needed three points as they are now 12^th in the league, rather than in the bottom three. Guingamp are now 4^th however, just behind Reims on goal difference. The visitors set the pace early on with David N’Gog putting his side ahead with a shot from the centre of the box. Guingamp got back into the game on the stroke of half-time; Yannis Salibur’s free kick ensured the hosts went in level at the break.

Salibur’s day took a turn for the worse not long into the second period when he received a second yellow card. This proved costly for Guingamp as Reims took advantage just two minutes later when David N’Gog scored his second of the game. Just as the game was about to finish, Hamari Traore also committed a foul which was a second bookable offence, and this meant both sides ended the game with ten players on the field.

Monaco 1-1 Caen

It was a great point for Caen at the Stade Louis II because it keeps 2^nd in the league standings and four points above their hosts Monaco, who are just down in 6^th. Fabio Coentrao came close for the home side, while Vincent Bessat and Julien Feret could only produce long range efforts. It took until the second half for the deadlock to be broken as Guido Carrillo scored his first goal for Monaco to make it 1-0.

Bessat came close once again for the visitors but his effort went just the wrong side of the post. It looked like Monaco were heading for the victory but with less than five minutes remaining, Caen struck back to earn a vital point. Ronny Rodelin turned the ball into the net after Syam Ben Youssef headed the ball towards him from a free kick to break the hearts of the home fans. This point keeps Caen near the top of the table, keeping their European dreams alive.

Montpellier 0-2 Gazélec Ajaccio

Gazélec came out on top in this battle and it was a huge win for the side. Both teams have been in a bit of a relegation battle since the start of the season and the three points in this came could see a massive shift in momentum. The visitors ended Montpellier’s six-game unbeaten run but also made it five wins from six themselves.

The breakthrough came on the stroke of half-time when Jacques Zoua was played in by a through ball from Amos Youga before calmly finishing. The second goal came much later in the second half and it left very little time for Montpellier to make a comeback. Tshibumbu Lungeny’s effort from the edge of the six-yard box was enough to seal the win, leaving Montpellier in 15^th while Gazélec are flying and have suddenly risen to 13^th.

Troyes 0-3 Toulouse

Troyes look as good as relegated now, even at this stage in the season as the failure to beat Toulouse has seen them end up 13 points adrift of safety. Toulouse remain 19^th but have moved to within three points of the safety mark after achieving consecutive wins for the first time in this campaign. They inflicted some early misery on Troyes after two minutes when Issa Diop headed in Oscar Trejo’s free kick to make it 1-0.

Jean-Armel Akpa-Akpro showed great pace and clinical finishing to double the lead for Le Tefece just after half-time. Their emergence after the interval was almost as speedy as the one in the first half. Both sides ended the game with ten men; Stephane Darbion and Marcel Tisserand both received two yellow cards to get them dismissed. Before the final whistle however, there was time for Toulouse to rub salt in the Troyes wounds as Aleksandar Pesic was able to add a third within the last five minutes of regulation time.

Lille 1-0 Saint-Étienne

Lille would have found themselves in 19^th place if they failed to beat Saint-Étienne in this match, but a narrow victory was enough to keep them in 18^th and stay in touch with safety. Les Verts however, are on a run of very inconsistent form and this has seen them plummet to 7^th in the league, despite it being very close at the top.

It was a fairly open start to the game but Lille felt they should have been awarded a penalty when Florent Balmont went down in the area, but all claims were waved away by the referee. The visitors could have just as easily taken the lead at the other end, but Valentin Eysseric saw his free kick rattle the crossbar. The deadlock was broken in spectacular fashion; Yacine Benzia was the quickest to get on the end of a long ball before he smashed a first-time volley into the back of the Saint-Étienne net. This was Lille’s first win under new coach Frederic Antonetti and this may be a turning point in their season.

Rennes 0-1 Marseille

The final match of this round of fixtures took place on Thursday evening when Rennes welcomed Marseille. Both sides were hoping for a similar position in the table as they are both hunting down the European spots which are there for the taking at the moment. Rennes have not won at Roazhon Park since late-August and it looked as though this run would continue as Remy Cabella put Les Olympiens ahead.

Georges-Kevin Nkoudou gave Cabella the ball and the Frenchman’s neat turn allowed him the space to get a shot away from range into the bottom corner. The home side did put up a fight in the latter stages of the game and if it wasn’t for Marseille keeper Steve Mandanda they might have scored an equaliser. Benjamin Andre and Jeremie Boga both came close for Rennes. Marseille had a great chance to put the game to bed through Lucas Ocampos but an excellent last-ditch tackle from Pedro Mendes kept the game alive. Marseille move up to 8^th and are now in touching distance of the European places, while Rennes are behind on goal difference in 10^th.