PARIS – Lille gained a potentially priceless 2-1 win over Marseille at the Velodrome on Sunday evening to stay top of the league on goal difference. In a high octane encounter young Belgian star Eden Hazard celebrated signing a new contract extension on Friday by firing the ball from 30m out past Marseille keeper Steve Mandanda to give Lille a 10th minute lead. Senegelese striker Moussa Sow almost doubled up for Lille shortly after but his close range angled shot from the left went high.
And it was only fine work from Mandanda that denied Lille’s Gervinho from six metres on the stroke of half time, with the Marseille players heading for the dressing room thankful of only being one goal behind.
Didier Deschamps’ men emerged after the break intent on unlocking Lille’s defence and in the 60th minute Loic Remy found the key, the France international shooting low and hard past Lille keeper Mickael Landrau. Just as it looked as though Marseille had done enough to earn a share of the spoils Pierre-Alain Frau angled in Emerson’s cross from the left to defy Mandanda in the 90th minute to earn Lille a famous victory. It kept the northerners top of the leage on goal difference from Rennes who had taken provisional command of the summit on Saturday with a 1-0 win over Montpellier. Earlier Sunday multiple former champions Lyon climbed above Marseille and Paris Saint Germain and into third with a 5-0 drubbing of Arles-Avignon, with Lisandro Lopez grabbing a hat-trick.
The Argentine international, sidelined for Lyon’s three last matches with a thigh problem, opened the scoring within the first quarter of an hour, adding two more goals, one a header, in the space of four second half minutes. Miralem Pjanic got Lyon’s second, having been set up by Lisandro – Ligue 1 Player of the Year last term, with Michel Bastos wrapping up a torrid encounter for Arles in injury time off a corner. Lisandro was thrilled to return with a three-timer, saying: “To play, to be on the pitch, that’s my life.” On winning a title with Lyon he added: “I am confident we will do it, perhaps this season, or next year. I will remain here (for a title).” “We know that goal difference could be important by the end of the season so we did well to remain concentrated right to the end,” commented Puel. Arles’s 17th loss of the season left them anchored at the foot of the table on 11 points, a yawning 13 adrift of the second from bottom side Lens.
Also on Sunday, Bordeaux, who have not had much to shout about this campaign, did their chances of securing European action next term a power of good with a 3-1 win at Brest. Brazilian winger Wendel set the former champions on the path to success when he opened the scoring shortly after the break with a sublime 25m free kick. Jaroslav Plasil doubled up in the 67th minute only for Brahim Farridj to give Brest some hope by cutting the deficit with three minutes on the clock, but Bordeaux sealed the three points with Cheikh Diabate’s strike in the second minute of time added on.
