In the wake of PSG, OM took a good option on 2nd place in Ligue 1, thanks to their breathless victory over Nantes 3-2. The Sampaoli team was surprised twice by goals from Girotto and Coco, they ran after the score but picked up quite logically, thanks to two penalties converted by Payet.
Then, Harit liberated the Vélodrome by victoriously taking over Gerson’s perfectly set back center (3-2, 75th). Goal that the young Moroccan refused to celebrate out of respect for his training club.
For 3rd place, also qualifying for the Champions League, it’s exciting. Rennes, beaten at La Meinau 2-1 by the grace of the pyrotechnicians of Racing, Diallo and Ajorque, finds itself tied with Strasbourg and Monaco. Terrier’s equalizer (1-1, 54th), for his 20th goal of the season, proved useless.
Thanks to their victory over Nice at the start of the evening (1-0), their fifth in a row, the team from the Principality finished strong like last season and is now eyeing a place on the podium. Monaco can thank Golovin, an opportunist following a handball foul by Benitez, for his third goal of the season.
Nice and Lens, respectively 6th and 7th, two and three points behind the trio, can still join the fight for 3rd place. And in any case, took the upper hand over Lyon and Lille, defeated by Brest and Reims, for places from 4th to 6th, qualifiers for the “small” European Cups.
Lorient and Clermont advance, Metz plunges
At the bottom of the table too, the suspense is still in full swing but things are becoming clearer in terms of relegation. The 33rd day offered three direct confrontations between teams fighting to stay in Ligue 1: Bordeaux – Saint-Étienne (2-2), Troyes – Clermont (0-1) and Lorient – Metz (1-0)… a ruthless game for the nerves, which ended in the last minutes, Lorient and Clermont emerged victorious in extremis, respectively thanks to a goal from Ouattara (90th + 6) and Bayo (88th). And rather against the course of the game.
For its part, Bordeaux dangled a victory against Saint-Étienne before letting it turn into a draw. Leading 2-0 after 23 minutes thanks to goals from Mara and Onana, the Guion players let Dupraz’s men come back, first by Bouanga (2-1, 33rd) then Nordin (2-2, 65th ). At the end of the game, however, the Girondins believed they had hit the jackpot when Briand cheated on Bernardoni but the VAR invalidated the 103rd goal in Ligue 1 from the veteran Bordeaux joker, for an offside (89th).
In the standings, Lorient climbs to 15th place, up to Angers, and, with 34 points, can look up. Troyes remains 16th with 33 points, but sees the other promoted, Clermont, new 17th, who now follows with 32 points.
Saint-Étienne, who is downgraded to 18th place and regains the seat of play-off, has no reason for satisfaction except to maintain his lead over Bordeaux, 19th, and to widen the gap on Metz, more than ever red lantern. Now 7 points behind the barrage Greens, the Grenats, who have not won for six games, seem to be heading towards Ligue 2. Frédéric Antonetti, who has never experienced such misfortune, did not fail to show his resignation by leaving Nguette a few minutes after his entry, then leaving the field as soon as the Lorient goal was scored.