Lille, winner of the shock against Lyon (1-0), and Rennes, who outperformed Montpellier (5-0), widened the gap on their pursuers in the podium race while munching two points on the dolphin Marseille, Sunday March 8, after the 28e Ligue 1 day.
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Lyon, the C1 very far on the horizon
The next train for the Champions League will probably no longer pass through Lyon, tired by an infernal calendar and tamed 1-0 Sunday in Lille, a direct competitor for the Ligue 1 podium. Ten days before the end of the championship, the OL slipped to seventh place far from its European ambitions, dropped by Rennes (3e) and ten points ahead. Its Lille host now has nine units in fourth place. Ironically, it is a pure product of the Lyon training center, Loïc Rémy (33), who donned the hangman costume in the first period (33e).
In Villeneuve-d'Ascq, Lyon seemed to have no more gas, dragging like a ball the chain of a fourth match in ten days, after the prestigious victories against Juventus Turin (1-0) and the rival Saint -Etienne (2-0), then slap against Paris SG (5-1) Wednesday Coupe de France.
"Indeed we are ten late (on the current 3e Ligue 1), it's a lot, admitted OL coach Rudi Garcia. You have to be aware of that. After, as long as it is mathematically possible for us to start from the front, chain as many victories as possible. "
Loïc Rémy in good shape
By tactical choice or by physical limit, the Lyonnais quickly abandoned the ball to Lille to proceed against. But their arrows Karl Toko-Ekambi and Moussa Dembélé did not sting, far from it. And the replacement Bertrand Traoré missed the equalizer in extra time (90e+2).
Conversely, the Lille people had energy, desire and ideas, a winning cocktail carried by the French international Jonathan Ikoné, between kidneys and devastating accelerators. With his fellow attackers, he turned the head of an overly static Lyon defense, in which appeared the Danish central defender Joachim Andersen, revived by Rudi Garcia in the absence of Marçal, suspended.
On the opening of the score, the wait for the Rhone's rearguard was fatal. Renato Sanches quickly swung a corner towards Jonathan Bamba, free of any marking, and the two men combined until the center in withdrawal taken again victoriously by Rémy. The number 9 Lille, very restless until then, roared with pleasure to celebrate, raised fist and surrounded by his teammates, his seventh goal in the exercise this season, the fourteenth all competitions.
For Lyon, the return to the capital of Gaul looks sad. Garcia will have to find the right words to re-mobilize his troops before the next deadlines. After the reception of Reims on Friday, a new hellish cycle will begin. First Juve for a qualification in the quarterfinals of C1, then a trip to Rennes and finally a League Cup final to be played on April 4 against PSG.
Rennes nibbles behind OM
Earlier in the afternoon, Rennes had displayed its ambitions and put pressure on the Losc in this race for the podium by crushing Montpellier (5-0) at the end of a removed and controlled match which consolidates its third place in Ligue 1, three days after his elimination in the semi-final of the Coupe de France.
"This is our benchmark game, our most successful game since the start of the season", coach Julien Stéphan was delighted. "The players really wanted to send a big message, they did it, now we have to confirm" next week in Bordeaux.
For Montpellier, who had revived last week against Strasbourg (3-0) but must receive Marseille on Saturday, it is a new manifestation of powerlessness outside, even if the players of Michel Der Zakarian have found twice the posts when everything was still possible in the first period. "The second half was a shipwreck, we didn't exist, we ran into a team from Rennes who gave us a lesson in football", recognized the Montpellier coach.
Beginning on a high pace even if Stéphan had chosen to leave his two attackers Mbaye Niang and Raphinha on the bench, Rennes quickly took control of the situation and saw his efforts rewarded with a superb strike from the right of Faitout Maouassa in full skylight (1 -0.9e). The Rennes continued to press and multiply the attacks, until doubling the bet after a great race by Flavien Tait, who fixed the goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli and ideally served Andrien Hunou in front of the empty cage (2-0, 28e).
The bad luck of Montpellier
Despite everything, Montpellier did not give up and was particularly dangerous when Gaëtan Laborde, served by Andy Delort, found the transverse (22e) then when a chisel of the latter found the post, just after Joris Gnagnon released a fleeing balloon on the line (35e). The pace remained high even when the rain fell on Roazhon Park at the hour of play. Under the deluge, Flavien Tait, magnificently served by a sharked Eduardo Camavinga, increased the note with a superb strike of the right (3-0, 68e).
As the rain subsided, Romain Del Castillo transformed into strength a whistled penalty for a Junior Sambia foul on Benjamin Bourigeaud (4-0, 73e). And the Reds and Blacks continued to multiply the attacks, still obtaining a penalty for a foul by Pedro Mendes on Sacha Boey. Hunou was responsible for transforming it, in front of a euphoric stadium (5-0, 87e).
Beyond the message sent to the pursuers, this river score also brought Rennes' goal difference to +14, a level "Interesting" for Stéphan. "Maybe all the details will count at the end".
Saint-Etienne avoids the worst
The week of Saint-Etienne was ultimately not perfect on all fronts: three days after their qualification for the final of the Coupe de France, the Greens could not do better than a draw against Bordeaux (1 -1) Sunday afternoon. A result that does not satisfy either of the two teams, both ASSE in its fight for maintenance and the Girondins in its hunt for European places.
The Stéphanois, who finished ten after the exclusion of Mahdi Camara (75e), have not won any of their last seven L1 games but can still thank Bouanga, the equalizer against the Girondins. Consequence in the classification, they lose a rank to find themselves at 17e position three points ahead of the Nîmes dam. Bordeaux, who could have achieved the perfect heist by taking advantage of their only opportunity signed Josh Maja (65e), remains in the second part of the table in twelfth place.
