After Lyon, Monaco and Paris Saint-Germain opened the 2022/23 season in the French league with victories on Friday and Saturday, it was Marseille’s turn this evening (Sunday), which defeated Reims 4:1. Nice, whom Maccabi Tel Aviv may meet in the Conference League qualifiers, finished 1:1 against the newcomer Toulouse. Lille, Lance and Montpellier recorded home wins in matches that yielded five goals each, Lorraine surprised Rennes away.
Marseille – Reims 1:4
Igor Tudor was booed by the crowd when he was introduced to the Stade Velodrome before the official debut in light of the tensions with some of his players, including captain Dimitri Payet who started the game on the bench, but nevertheless marked the first V against an opponent that Marseille had not beaten at home since May 2016. The victory was brought by the two defenders The new ones: right-winger Jonathan Kloss put a sharp ball into the box in the 13th minute that the visiting defender Vot Pass pushed into his goal, and left-winger Nuno Tavares cut from the left and kicked a flat ball into the net on the right in the added time of the first half. Colombian Luis Suarez came on as a substitute and also scored on his debut (74th), while Polarin Balogun, on loan from Arsenal, missed for the guest six minutes from time, but Suarez completed a brace in extra time. Oscar Garcia, who lost some of his biggest assets during the summer break, including Frederic Raicovic who was sold to Mallorca and Hugo Akitika who moved to Paris Saint-Germain, started the season with a loss.
Toulouse – Nice 1:1
The Purples, who returned to the top league after two years, wanted to surprise the team from the Riviera, and were on the right track after taking the lead in the 20th minute. Branko van de Bomen, who scored 21 goals in the minor league last year, scored his first goal in the senior league when he found his Dutch compatriot, Theis Dalinga, who scored a surprising 0:1. Lucien Fabre’s Nice, who may face Maccabi Tel Aviv in the Conference League qualifying playoffs, brought Aron Ramsey off the bench to make his debut in the 77th minute and saw him make an immediate impact. A minute after coming on, the Welshman received a pass from Bilal Brahimi and with one touch sent an accurate kick into the far corner. The guest who dreams of the top flight was unable to complete a turnaround, and next week at home against Strasbourg will try to register a first win of the season before starting her journey in Europe.
Lille – Auxerre 1:4
A great start for Paolo Fonseca, who although had to maneuver after the club sold half the car, but at least managed to keep the scorer Jonathan David who provided a double and an assist in the opening round. Auxerre returned to Ligue 1 after a decade, but within 36 seconds and even before any of its players touched the ball, the Canadian striker who was placed on the right wing, set up Benjamin Andre who beat Benoit Costil and gave Lille the lead. Two minutes later David scored himself and in the 39th minute Rami Cabela set up another one for him. Right-back Akim Zadadke signed in the 64th minute with a goal on his debut, after arriving on a free transfer from Clermont. The veteran Gaten Charbonnier shriveled with a rebound in the 68th minute, but did not prevent three easy points from the 2020/21 champions.
Lance – Brest 2:3
31-year-old Florian Sotoka celebrated his first career hat-trick and led the host to a home victory in the opening round. The striker took advantage of a bad tackle by goalkeeper Marco Bizot in the 27th minute and was stopped by him with a penalty six minutes later, but made amends in the 62nd minute with a shot after Przemysław Frankowski’s lift and nailed the third three minutes later. Algerian Haris Belkabala faded in the 66th minute and fellow substitute Roman del Castillo gave hope with a penalty in the 80th minute, after Bryce Samba stopped the first attempt and a re-kick was awarded.
Run – Lorraine 1:0
A little over three months ago, Lorraine came to stay with Ran in the Brittany derby and grabbed a high five. Tonight revenge came in the form of a big surprise in the opening round, when the team that finished fourth last season and presented the second best attack in the league, failed to score and was punished on the other side with an unfortunate own goal in the 65th minute. The tragic hero was the Belgian stopper Arthur Thiet, who was bought for 19 million euros from Bologna and will not want to remember his debut.
More games
Montpellier – Troyes 2:3
For Montpellier: Theo Saint-Los (3), Tez Savanier (15 and 81). Troyes: Florian Terdio (12 penalty), Mama Balda (17)
Angers – Nantes 0:0
The rest of the first round matches in France:
Lyon – Ajax 1:2
Strasbourg – Monaco 2:1
Clermont – Paris Saint-Germain 5:0