Le Mans UC 72 0 – 1 AJ Auxerre

AJA pushed into the top three, at least temporarily, as they eked out a win against Paolo Duarte’s side, who are currently firmly in the relation zone. Speaking of Paolo Duarte, here’s an excellent interview he gave to the Ligue 1 official site. The interviewer is rather bold, asking some interesting questions, and also seems to have been reading to much Harry Potter lately, referring to Jose Mourinho as the ‘Chosen One’.

FC Lorient 5 – 0 Boulogne Côte d’Opale
(No video highlights available at the point–I have seen none of this match)
I’m going to assume from the scoreline that this match was total destruction. It’s also further proof that Boulogne are going down and Cristian Gourcuff is a half decent manager.

AS Monaco FC 0 – 0 Grenoble Foot 38

Some stellar goalkeeping from Ronan Le Crom gave Grenoble their first point of the season, and they dominated the match. A bit of a shock for Monaco, who were playing at home and went into the weekend in third place. Check out the Monaco Offside for a more complete review later.

AS Nancy Lorraine 0 – 1 AS Saint-Etienne

A wonderful goal from the quickly rising star of Dimitri Payet proves key for ASSE, and bumps a frustratingly inconsistent Nancy down to 10th place. Check out the Saint-Etienne Offside for a review.

Paris Saint-Germain 0 – 1 OGC Nice

Guess who’s even more inconsistent than ASNL? PSG of course. Last weeks victory wasn’t a turnaround, simply a performance on which to base false hope. PSG completely dominated the match, but it was Nice who put the ball in the NET. I give credit to Mounier and Remy for the beautiful cross and header. The PSG Offside will have something up soon.

Valenciennes FC 1 – 1 Montpellier Hérault SC

Did you know that these two teams were the highest scoring in Ligue 1? I certainly didn’t. Anyway, Colombians ran the show, but the result didn’t really change anything. Don’t you wish we had a Montpellier Offside?

Sochaux-Montbéliard 1 – 2 RC Lens

Lens pulled out of the drop zone with this victory and grounded Sochaux in the bottom half of the table. Be sure to visit the Lens Offside for more.

LOSC Lille Métropole 2 – 0 Girondins de Bordeaux

In one of the unexpected results of the evening, surprise bottom feeders LOSC upset Ligue leaders Bordeaux. Both sides put on displays of how to miss one on one’s with the keeper, but Gervinho’s dribbling ability eventually won the match for Lille. Visit the Bordeaux Offside for more.

Toulouse FC 3 – 2 Stade Rennais FC
Some nice goals in this matchup, TFC eventually coming out on top. APG seems to have rediscovered his scoring touch, but Moussa Sissoko seems to have no intention of stopping to let Gignac take over. Check out Dave Trotter’s review at the Toulouse Offside.

Olympique Lyonnais 5 – 5 Olympique de Marseille

Match of the century? It’s certainly a candidate. I’ll let the Lyon and Marseille Offsides elaborate.

Rennes 0-3 Valenciennes

Rennes dominated from the off, having a Peter Hansson goal wrongly dissalowed, followed by numerous chances including an Ekoko shot that hit the bar. The first goal came a little way into the second half, when Valenciennes’ new center-back Dianbobo Balde headed in from close range. This was followed by two beautiful goals from Valenciennes, the first a superb long range individual effort from Fahid Ben Khalfallah, the second a stunning Gregory Pujol shot that hit the crossbar twice and than bounced out, crossing the goal line in the process. Needless to say, the Stade de la Route de Lorient was stunned.

Nice 1-0 Le Mans

This match turned sour early on when a scuffle for the ball between Mamadou Bagayoko and Geder resulted in a red card for the Le Mans defender. Le Mans dominated the chances, but it was Nice who broke the deadlock when Ismael Gace headed in a corner. Le Mans had several chances to tie it up but the match ended 1-0 to the delight of the fans at the Stade du Ray.

Sochaux 1-4 PSG

Check out the PSG Offside for a review later. I can guarantee you it’ll be there.

FC Girondins de Bordeaux 3-0 Le Mans UC 72

Bordeaux, inspired by their victory against Bayern midweek, got back to winning ways against a Le Mans side currently sitting in the relegation zone.

US Boulogne Cote d’Opale 1-3 AS Monaco FC

Monaco left it late against a quickly falling Boulogne side to climb into second place. That Nene just can’t stop scoring!

Grenoble Foot 38 1-2 AS Nancy-Lorraine

This was a painful loss for Grenoble. On track for their first points of the season after gaining their first lead in the 53rd minute, they fell to two late goals.

OGC Nice 4-1 Olympique Lyonnais

The shocker of the evening. The score says it all. Nice handed Les Gones their second straight loss and climbed out of the relegation zone, while Lyon dropped down to 3rd place. Check out the Lyon Offside review here.

AS Saint-Etienne 0-2 Valenciennes FC

Okay, maybe I was wrong about Sainte’s summer signings. Why are Valenciennes so good?

FC Sochaux-Montbeliard 1-0 FC Lorient

Sochaux continue their push up the table with a solid win against a solid team.

Stade Rennais FC 3-0 Montpellier HSC

Montpellier went into this match in 2nd place, enjoying their fairytale season. Rennes got down to business and banged in some goals. Fairytale over.

The games happening this weekend are…

Week 9 – Saturday, October 17, 2009
19:00	AJ Auxerre				Girondins de Bordeaux
19:00	Le Mans UC 72				Boulogne Côte d’Opale
19:00	Olympique Lyonnais				FC Sochaux-Montbéliard
19:00	Montpellier Hérault SC				AS Saint-Etienne
19:00	AS Nancy Lorraine				Olympique de Marseille
19:00	Valenciennes FC				Grenoble Foot 38
21:00	LOSC Lille Métropole				Stade Rennais FC
Week 9 – Sunday, October 18, 2009
17:00	FC Lorient				OGC Nice
17:00	AS Monaco FC				RC Lens
21:00	Toulouse FC				Paris Saint-Germain

While the table is currently looking like this:

1	Olympique Lyonnais	8	6	2	0	+10	20
2	Girondins de Bordeaux	8	6	1	1	+10	19
3	Montpellier Hérault SC	8	5	2	1	+6	17
4	AS Monaco FC	8	5	0	3	+2	15
5	Olympique de Marseille	8	4	2	2	+4	14
6	FC Lorient	8	4	2	2	+2	14
7	Paris Saint-Germain	8	3	4	1	+4	13
8	Stade Rennais FC	8	3	3	2	+6	12
9	AS Nancy Lorraine	8	3	2	3	+2	11
10	AJ Auxerre	8	3	2	3	-1	11
11	Valenciennes FC	8	3	1	4	0	10
12	AS Saint-Etienne	8	3	1	4	-2	10
13	LOSC Lille Métropole	8	2	3	3	-3	9
14	FC Sochaux-Montbéliard	8	3	0	5	-5	9
15	Toulouse FC	8	2	2	4	0	8
16	Boulogne Côte d’Opale	8	2	2	4	-5	8
17	RC Lens	8	2	2	4	-6	8
18	OGC Nice	8	2	2	4	-8	8
19	Le Mans UC 72	8	2	1	5	-3	7
20	Grenoble Foot 38	8	0	0	8	-13	0

Since most of the matches in Ligue 1 happen at the same time, I’m going to make some recommendations for matches to see. Obviously you will want to see your club’s game, but here are a few others worth glancing at.

Montpellier-Herault SC vs. AS Saint-Etienne
Today, 19:00 (1pm Eastern 10am Pacific)
I’m interested in this match because it’s another proving point for both sides. Was Les Verts win over Bordeaux a fluke, or are they going to continue their climb up the table? Montpellier are the Cinderella story of the season thus far. Will they assert their position as a title challenger, or drop back into the midtable region? These questions could very well be answered in this match. I’ll be tuning in.
Probable Lineups:
Montpellier: Jourdren – Yanga-Mbiwa, Dzodic, Spahic, Jeunechamp – Pitau, Marveaux, Costa – Aït-Fana (ou Lacombe), Montano, Dernis

Saint-Etienne: Janot – Andreu, Benalouane, N’Daw, Dabo – Landrin, Fernandes, Matuidi, Payet – Augusto, Bergessio

LOSC Lille Metropole vs. Stade Rennais FC
Today, 21:00 (3pm Eastern, 12pm Pacific)
This is a battle between two of the best teams in Ligue 1 who aren’t in our “Big Three”. These are the clubs you would expect to see in the Europa League places. This season, both sides are lower than they’d like to be in the table, Lille hanging around at 13th while Rennes are barely staying in the top ten in 8th place, only a point in front of 10th place Auxerre. Expect a tense atmosphere and no more than two goals.
Probable Lineups:
Lille: Butelle – Béria, Rami, Chedjou, Emerson – Cabaye, Debuchy, Dumont – Gervinho, Hazard – Frau

Rennes: Douchez – Théophile-Catherine, Fanni, Aubey, Danzé – M’vila, Br. Cheyrou, J. Leroy – Bangoura, M. Sow, Thomert

I’ll add my two for tomorrow later, but rest assured that Toulouse-PSG will be one of them…

You may completely disagree with this list, think it’s terrible, that I’m the worst blogger ever, whatever. Tell me so in the comments. And to tell you the truth I probably don’t agree with it much either, but I compiled it in half an hour, and I feel exhausted after fixing it innumerable times. Tell me what you think.

Grenoble Foot 38 2-3 Montpellier HSC


OGC Nice 3-2 Valenciennes FC

Paris Saint-Germain 1-1 AS Nancy Lorraine

Stade Rennais FC 0-1 AJ Auxerre

AS Saint-Etienne 3-1 FC Girondins de Bordeaux

FC Sochaux-Montbéliard 1-0 Le Mans UC 72

RC Lens 0-2 Olympique Lyonnais

US Boulogne CO 2-3 LOSC Lille


Toulouse FC 0-1 FC Lorient

Olympique de Marseille 1-2 AS Monaco FC

Enjoy the highlights!

Now, on to the the players that most impressed and disappointed us this week…

The Tops

The Whole Valenciennes Team:

Given that I write for the OM blog, I am clearly biased. However, I do try to give props where they are due. And, I think the Valencienne team last night proved that teams without a lot of money and “stars” can beat the very best if they play as a unit, take their chances and have confidence. Even more impressive is that they came from behind twice to equal and then surpass OM’s goals. They were focused, vigilant and not afraid to impose themselves. Congratulations to the whole team and extra props to Rafael, the defender who headed in the winning goal! I will be hoping that they continue this attitude when they play Bordeaux (11/21 and 3/28), PSG (5/5) and Lyon (5/8). Also, if anyone is interested, The Offside is looking for someone to blog about this team….for more information, click here.

Frederic Thomas

Thomas scored twice in Le Mans’ 3-0 win over Lens this weekend. I didn’t see the game, but from what I have read the game was even more one-sided than the score line suggests (despite a stellar performance Lens goalkeeper Vedran Runje). Thomas’s goals helped Le Mans move into 15th place on the table (and out of the drop zone), dropping Lens into 13th place. Thomas’s second curling shot into the top corner from 30 yards out was particularly beautiful. Check it out at the 34 second mark here, along with the other goals.

Bafetimbi Gomis:

Gomis’s 72′ goal for Lyon not only gave his team a 2-1 win over Toulouse, but his goal also sent OL to the top of the table (although only briefly as Wendel’s goal sent Bordeaux back to the top). The whole team did pretty well to battle back after Toulouse scored in the opening minutes of the game.

The Flops

Didier Deschamps…and the Whole OM Defense:

Last year’s defensive debacles were suppose to be a thing of the past after this summer’s major investments in Heinze, Cisse, Rool, Diawarra, M’bia…in addition to securing longer contracts with Taiwo (until 2011) and Mandanda (until 2014). The season began well defensively, with OM only allowing in 4 goals in the first six games. Perhaps we should have seen the signs when Heinze and Cisse allegedly got into a fight in the OM dressing room after the Milan-OM game in the Champion’s League (in addition to their arguing on the pitch after the 2nd Milan goal). Both of them seem to want to be leaders, but neither of them seem willing to take responsibility for their errors (which, in my opinion is the most important quality in a leader). But, let’s take a second to sympathize (at the very least empathize) with the players. DD deployed a starting 11 of almost entirely new players yesterday– 6 out of the 11 players last night were purchased this summer (Diawarra, Heinze, Cisse, Rool, Gonzalez and Morientes). And, frankly it looked like it last night– and DD did nothing to help establish some control and structure. The fact that two of their goals came from set pieces is just ridiculous– and further proof that the team is not getting enough specific instructions from DD regarding defensive strategies and marking.

Lille Offense

Lille can only blame themselves for falling into the “drop zone” this week. They had plenty of chances to score this week, if they had managed to get even a few of their shots on target. I will give some credit to the Nice goalie, who made some excellent saves. But, given the number of chances Lille had, this game should have been over after the first half alone.

Nice…with the exception of Loic Remy and David Ospina

Remy was the only Nice player who managed to look even a bit dangerous in front of the goal. He saved Nice with his 60′ goal, but the rest of the team could barely manage a shot towards the goal (much less on target). Defensively, Nice did nothing to break up Lille’s momentum, resulting in several scary moments for the Nicoise fans. David Ospina (Nice Goalie) deserves a lot of free drinks after his performance.

Youssouf Hadji (Nancy), 39th minute, against Teddy Richert.

(Second goal)

Moussa Sissoko (Toulouse), 8th minute, against Hugo Lloris.

(First goal)

Yannis Tafer (Lyon), 52nd minute, against Yohann Pele.

(Second goal)

Frederic Thomas (Le Mans), 30th minute, against Vedran Runje.

(Second goal)

Wendel (Bordeaux), 24th minute, against Nicolas Douchez.

I’m thinking this is probably between Hadji and Wendel, but Thomas may have an outside chance. Vote away!

Who gets the prodigious Goal of the Week acolade this round?(polling)

AS Monaco 1-2 AS Saint-Etienne

(0-1 Sanogo 3′, 1-2 Bergessio 90′+2)

(1-1 Puygrenier 56′)
In an exciting match in the principality Saint-Etienne move out of the drop zone and AS Monaco fall from the Europa League places. Sainte’s new signings seem to have been effective, as new recruits Gonzalo Bergessio and Boucabar Sanogo each found the net, while other signing Augusto Fernandez threatened on set pieces. Saint Etienne have displayed a remarkable change in form since the arrival of the two Argentines, and AS Monaco have shown that they really are no more than a midtable team.

AJ Auxerre 2-0 Grenoble Foot 38

(1-0 Pedretti 63′, 2-0 Hengbart 84′)
Auxerre continue to improve their position, this time by beating a Grenoble side still without a single point. I can’t say I watched any of this game but the highlights, but apparently both Ireneusz Jelen and David Jemmali were sent off in the 21st minute when an altercation after Jemmali’s dangerous tackle turned violent. Benoit Pedretti opened his scoring tally for the season, while deffender Cederic Hengbart becomes Auxerre’s top scorer in Ligue 1 after scoring his second in two Matchdays.

FC Lorient 1-1 Paris Saint-Germain

(1-0 Mvuemba 40′, 1-1 Hoarau 45′+1)
PSG continued their slump against 8th place Lorient, who continue to impress. PSG had Stephane Sessegnon back, and his presence proved vital, creating the goal that equalized the match for the Parisiens. Lorient opened the scoring with some nice passing around the box, culminating in a goal to former Portsmouth player Arnold Mvuemba, but PSG brought it back to level terms barely five minutes later when a good play involving Sessegnon and Ludovic Giuly resulted in a tap-in for Guillaume Hoarau’s first goal of the season.

Valenciennes FC 3-2 Olympique de Marseille

(0-1 Morientes 13′, 1-1 Bisevac 21′, 1-2 Niang 22′, 2-2 Ducourtioux 28′, 3-2 Rafael 84′)

“The OM coach had promised that Ligue 1 would see more of Fernando Morientes when the Spaniard was ready, and the ex-Real Madrid and Monaco forward responded to being handed his first start with his maiden goal in OM colours after just 13 minutes.

The strike sparked a glut of three more goals in the next 17 minutes as the balance of the match swung back and forth violently.

OM’s advantage lasted just seven minutes with Milan Bisevac levelling after Steve Mandanda and the Marseille rearguard had failed to deal with Rudy Mater’s corner.

The visitors, though, edged back in front on 23 minutes – Mamadou Niang claiming his fifth goal of the season after VA keeper Guy Rolland Ndy Assembe had parried a Morientes header invitingly into his path.

Schmitz strike

Having got their noses in front, Marseille again proved incapable of holding onto their lead, and Valenciennes were level before the half-hour mark. Johan Audel skipped by left-back Cyril Rool before delivering a cross that David Ducourtioux dived full-length to head past Mandanda.

Niang and Brandao both narrowly missed the target in the second half before Lucho Gonzalez brought a fine stop from Ndy Assembe, who provided the platform for the hosts to claim all three points.

With their defence holding firm, VA finally picked a way through from a well-delivered set-piece seven minutes from time. Renaud Cohade’s free-kick found Rafael Schmitz rising highest, and the Brazilian’s well-placed header beat Mandanda to give Philippe Montanier’s men their third win in a four-match unbeaten run.”

Ligue 1

Couldn’t have said it better myself.

Montpellier HSC 1-0 US Boulogne

(1-0 Dzodic 78′)
In the battle of the promoted sides, Montpellier gained an unconvincing win against a Boulogne team looking set to quickly drop in the table. It took until the 78th minute to break the deadlock, and even then it was a sloppy goal after a questionable call where Matheiu Valverde appeared to have been fouled. This match was reportedly a snooze fest.

AS Nancy-Lorainne 2-1 FC Sochaux-Montbeliard

(1-0 Hadji (pen) 3′, 2-0 Hadji 39′, 2-1 Martin 82′)
Sochaux continued their awful slump today with defeat at a dangerous looking Nancy side. Charlie Davies has lost his early season form, and Sochaux looked lifeless. Nancy have been unexpectedly adept at putting the ball in the net this season, considering that their recent successes have mainly been down to a solid defense. Sochaux have well and truly returned to the relegation dogfight.

Olympique Lyonnais 2-1 Toulouse FC

(0-1 Sissoko 8′, 1-1 Tafer 52′, 1-2 Gomis 71′)
In one of the more interesting matches of the night, Les Gones continued their excellent form against a tough Toulouse side. Even without three quarters of their starting defense, Toulouse completely dominated the first half, going ahead early after a horrible mistake by Mathieu Bodmer. Toulouse almost extended their lead when Bodmer again fumbled, but Andre-Pierre Gignac was unable to slide the ball past Lloris and the half ended 0-1. Bodmer was taken off for 19 year old Yannis Tafer, and Jeremy Toulalan was shifted into the center of defense to compensate. Tafer’s impact was immediate, pounding an Aly Cissokho cross into the back of the net in the 52nd minute for his first Ligue 1 goal. Lyon finally took the lead late on when Bafetimbi Gomis continued his goalscoring run by deflecting Miralem Pjanic’s shot into the net with his head.

Await more exciting games tomorrow, when Lens travel to Le Mans and Lille take on Nice at home, followed by a much anticipated Rennes vs. Bordeaux match at the Stade Chaban Delmas.

FC Girondins de Bordeaux

V-neck? Really? I don’t like Puma jerseys in general, but these are horrible.

US Boulogne Cote d’Opale

They have the look of Ligue 2 jerseys. Whats up with the black rectangle on the home jersey?

Grenoble Foot 38

Nike sure does make boring jerseys.

Le Mans UC 72

These pictures don’t show it, but they still have the chicken on their shirt. I like the gold trim though.

So, which club has the best jersey?(survey software)