Ligue 1 Review Gameweek 5

 

Points for the relegation contenders meant the unpredictability of Ligue 1 continued in the latest round of fixtures, while it is becoming clear to see which sides could succeed at the top of the table this season.

 

Friday 16 September

Caen 0-6 Paris Saint-Germain Venue – Stade Michel d’Ornano

Following two games without a win, PSG finally got back to their old ways with an astounding victory over Caen on Friday evening.

Edinson Cavani stole the show for Les Parisians, netting four first-half goals. The Uruguayan opened his account for this game in the 12^th-minute after converting Maxwell’s cross. His second came from the spot, making it 2-0 midway through the first period after Lucas Moura was brought down in the box.

Maxwell and Cavani combined once more for the latter to complete his hat-trick, before he added a fourth in added time, guiding Thomas Meunier’s through ball past a helpless Remy Vercoutre.

With the game already won, Cavani made way at half-time and the emphatic victory was completed by Lucas Moura and Jean-Kevin Augustin in the second period. PSG continue to hunt down Monaco in 3^rd position, while Caen drop to 14^th.

 

Saturday 17 September

Monaco 3-0 Rennes Venue – Stade Louis II

Leonardo Jardim’s Monaco made it four wins in a row as they as they strode past Rennes at the Stade Louis II.

The match wasn’t as comfortable for the hosts as the scoreline suggests, with only Radamel Falcao’s goal separating the two sides up until the final few second half minutes.

Fresh from his goal in the Champions League against Tottenham Hotspur, Thomas Lemar came up with the goods once again for Monaco. He was set up by Bernardo Silva to tap in at the back post in the 90^th-minute, before adding more gloss to the win with a 25-yard effort two minutes later.

Monaco are still looking like the biggest threat to PSG as they remain top of the league, while Rennes’ third match without a victory leaves them 10^th in the league standings.

Bordeaux 0-1 Angers Venue – Nouveau Stade de Bordeaux

Two consecutive wins for Angers means they are now out of the relegation zone, climbing to 13^th after beating Bordeaux who fell to 5^th following their second loss of the season.

Diego Rolan missed a host of chances for the home side and Bordeaux were punished as Angers took the lead. Karl Toko Ekambi opened the scoring; pouncing on a rebound after his initial attempt was saved.

Matters got worse for Les Girondins and Rolan in the latter stages of the game, as the striker was shown a straight red card for a challenge on Pierrick Capelle with five minutes remaining.

Dijon 0-0 Metz Venue – Stade Gaston Gérard

Dijon and Metz met for the first time since their promotion from Ligue 2, but the game finished goalless at the Stade Gaston Gérard.

The visitors had started the campaign much better than Saturday’s opponents, with just one defeat to the champions PSG against their name. Both sides had one massive opportunity to take the lead with a penalty each, however both were missed.

Metz’s Mevlut Erding struck the crossbar with his spot-kick after Mehdi Abeid was adjudged to have handled the ball in the area.

There was a swing in the favour of Dijon when Cheick Doukoure was dismissed for a second bookable offence. Even when presented with a penalty Dijon couldn’t grab the winner as Frederic Sammaritano saw his effort saved by Thomas Didillon. Metz are still flying high in 4^th, while Dijon remain dangerously close to the bottom three in 16^th.

Lorient 1-0 Lille Venue – Stade du Moustoir

Lorient pulled off the shock of the weekend as they ended a four-match string of defeats by beating Lille.

Majeed Waris went close with a header for Les Merlus but his effort was matched by Lille’s Vincent Enyeama. It didn’t take long for Lorient to launch another attack and they were awarded a penalty when Stoppila Sunzu handled the ball in the 76^th-minute; a chance Benjamin Moukandjo took to earn his side all three points.

Lille’s third loss of the season left them in 17^th position and while the win didn’t lift Lorient off the bottom of the table, they have closed in on their nearest rivals.

 

Nancy 1-1 Nantes Venue – Stade Marcel Picot

Both Nancy and Nantes remained in the bottom three, 19^th and 18^th respectively, after they couldn’t be separated at the Stade Marcel Picot on Saturday.

After a goalless first half, Nantes drew first blood in the 66^th-minute through Mariusz Stepinski after he fired his shot into the bottom corner following Leo Dubois’ assist.

The lead didn’t last long, six minutes in fact, as Nancy pulled a goal back. Loic Puyo’s well-directed free-kick ensured the hosts would earn a share of the spoils.

Toulouse 2-1 Guingamp Venue – Stadium Municipal

As they look to avoid a similar campaign to last season, Toulouse came out on top once again, this time overcoming Guingamp.

Guingamp were reduced to ten men shortly before half-time when goalkeeper Karl-Johan Johnsson was dismissed for handling outside their area. This didn’t seem to hinder the visitors as they took the lead; Jimmy Briand scored from the spot after Fernando Marcal was fouled by Jimmy Durmaz.

Despite taking the lead, Guingamp saw their unbeaten start to the Ligue 1 season vanish within two second half minutes. Steeve Yago drew a foul from Yannis Salibur in the box and Martin Braithwaite converted the resulting spot-kick in the 63^rd-minute. Durmaz then atoned for his earlier error by scoring the winner for the home side in fine fashion.

The two sides now remain side-by-side in the table with Toulouse in 6^th and Guingamp 7^th due to an inferior goal difference.

 

Sunday 18 September

Montpellier 1-1 Nice Venue – Stade de la Mosson

Nice’s unbeaten start to the season is still intact and they remain 2^nd in the league, despite being held to a draw by 12^th place Montpellier.

The match wasn’t going to plan for Les Aiglons and the home side took advantage; Malang Sarr appeared to handle the ball in the penalty area and Ryad Boudebouz broke the deadlock from the spot in the 67^th-minute.

Younes Belhanda was denied by the woodwork in the first half but there was no stopping him five minutes from time. Anastasios Donis unleashed the Moroccan to score the equaliser and ensure Nice remained undefeated in the league.

Saint-Étienne 1-0 Bastia Venue – Stade Geoffroy-Guichard

After the late equaliser against PSG last weekend, Saint-Étienne left it late again to score the winner in additional time versus Bastia on Sunday.

Les Verts were handed a golden opportunity to take the lead after seven minutes when Jean Louis-Leca brought down Robert Beric in the area, but the goalkeeper made amends by saving the resulting spot-kick.

It looked as though Bastia were about to earn a valuable point but another penalty was awarded to Saint-Étienne in the 93^rd-minute. Substitute Romain Hamouma was brought down by Yannick Cahuzac and he stepped up to capitalise from the spot and sink the hearts of Bastia.

The victory keeps Saint-Étienne in the hunt for a European spot as they move up to 8^th, but Bastia are down in 11^th following the weekend’s results.

Marseille 0-0 Lyon Venue – Stade Vélodrome

Out-of-form Marseille and Lyon couldn’t be separated at the Stade Vélodrome as a goalless draw meant they lost further ground on their rivals.

The hosts were saved by goal-line technology in the early stages when Yohann Pele made a mess of gathering Maciej Rybus’ effort. Marseille fought back and went close through Bafetimbi Gomis, but his header ricocheted off teammate Matheus Doria before sailing over the bar.

Lyon thought they had scored the opener but it was controversially disallowed. Sergi Darder’s fine strike was ruled out as Maxwel Cornet was deemed to have interfered with play whilst in an offside position. Les Olympiens continued to threaten and applied late pressure, but to no avail.

Les Gones currently sit 9^th in the Ligue 1 standings, while Marseille are having similar struggles to last season as they are only 15^th.