Matchday 12 - The lion has fallen! Temporarily!

Now here is a day out of the ordinary. Lyon was handed there first loss, Marseille buried their head a bit more into the sand, and the race at the top got that much hotter.

Rennes 1-0 Lyon. It’s about time someone knocked those lions off their asses. After 18 matches of invincibility (including last season) Rennes, the team who popped Lyon 4-1 last season, did the honours of stopping the latter team’s run. Rennes were right in it early, and after a few tries, M’Bia headed home a beautiful cross to put the home side ahead. For good. Lyon tried desperately to come back with a flurry of action, all in vain. Hats off to Rennes.

Auxerre 2-3 Le Mans was a feast. Le Mans’ Bangoura got things going on fifteen minutes, putting away Matsui’s cross with a clinically placed header. Akalé struck even at the hour mark after Mathis’ shot hit the goalpost. The hosts got a go-ahead goal 20 minutes later when Pieroni converted a penalty. No less then a minute later, the feisty visitors pulled one back, also on penalty. With all pointing to a draw, Bangoura completed the hat trick and a spectacular victory for the MUC.

Marseille 0-1 Lorient proved one thing. Marseille are sucking. After a dream start, they’ve lost four straight, and not against a particularly strong opposition this time. Lorient were starting their very own Hilario, and he finished a very decent game. Gignac plucked Le Pen’s cross into the mesh minutes after the start of the second half. A frustrated string of OM players tried to get the game back into their hands, but the Merlus managed their opposition with remarkable ability. Marseille is now 6th, with an internal crisis on their hands.

Monaco 0-0 Nice helps no one. Both teams in crappy position walked away with reluctantly-accepted points after an even, and boring contest. One highlight, the only one. Roma blocked Ederson’s 85th-minute penalty to dodge the worst.

Saint-Etienne 3-0 Toulouse had a nice ring to it. Saint-Etienne, in form at the moment, let their message be heard early when Hognon put the ball across the line after ten minutes. A quarter of an hour later, Gomis answered critics and netted Les Verts’ second. Feindouno spanked Toulouse for the third goal five minutes from time.

Sedan 1-1 Nantes had a similar scenario. Both teams, who were and are in the red zone, demonstrated no particular good play in this average game. Payet did open the mark for the visitors on a crafty strike before half-time, and ex-Canari Pujol drew even on the hour after redirecting a cross from Lachor. A mediocre outing that will have to be improved upon for these clubs to stay in Ligue 1.

Sochaux 1-0 Troyes was a game to gather up statistics. Neither team really showed up to play, as expected, and Sochaux got a good result. Nothing spectacular happened until N’Daw posted a fine volley to put the FCSM up on 67 minutes. Troyes fell asleep then, and lucky for them so did Sochaux. The latter are in 5th place without showing particular talent.

Valenciennes 0-3 Lille saw a derby go wild. The anticipated match got underway in great fashion, and Fauvergue put one through Penneteau to open the scoring. On the hour, young buck Odemwingie forced Paauwe to score an own goal to put the visitors up two-nil. Cabaye added insult to injury when he added a third in injury time.

Nancy 2-1 Bordeaux was the feel-good game of the week. Nancy, who just seem to get better and better, offed a strong Bordeaux side with fine play. Puygrenier got the hosts off to a good start on a festival of headers that finally found the back of the net after sixteen minutes. Darcheville pulled even fifteen minutes later after a wild rush by Alonso and Micoud. But the game went to the Nancéens when Zerka cracked Ramé on a penalty. Nancy are pleasantly surprised with their second place.

Paris SG 1-3 Lens proved a strong game for Lens. Paris managed the ball well in the first half-hour, and were rewarded when Armand smashed the ball home on a corner kick. On the 50-minute mark, Cousin tied the match when he admirably placed the ball into the open corner of the net. The same man of the hour put RCL in front on a beautiful strike into the corner just after the hour mark. Fifteen minutes later, Thomert capitalized on poor defensive efforts and won his duel with Landreau.

Category: Auxerre (AJA), Bordeaux (FCGB), France Ligue 1, Le Mans (MUC 72), Lens (RCL), Lille (LOSCM), Lorient (FCLBS), Lyon (OL), Marseille (OM), Match Recaps, Monaco (ASMFC), Nancy (ASNL), Nice (OGCN), Paris (PSG), Player News, Rennes (SRFC), Saint-Étienne (ASSE), Sochaux (FCSM), Team News, Toulouse (TFC), Valenciennes (VAFC)

Tags: Auxerre (AJA), Bordeaux (FCGB), France Ligue 1, Le Mans (MUC 72), Lens (RCL), Lille (LOSCM), Lorient (FCLBS), Lyon, Lyon (OL), Marseille, Marseille (OM), Match, Match Recaps, Monaco (ASMFC), Nancy, Nancy (ASNL), Nantes (FCNA), Nice (OGCN), Paris, Paris (PSG), Player News, Rennes (SRFC), Saint-Étienne (ASSE), Sedan (CSSA), Sochaux (FCSM), Team News, Toulouse (TFC), Troyes (ESTAC), Valenciennes (VAFC)

Subscribe   The Offside RSS Feeds

Print

Share