Like an underdog story? Look no further than Sheffield United, Cagliari, Osasuna, Freiburg and AngersBy Martin Laurence for WhoScoredThe unpredictability of football was in evidence over the weekend as Manchester City, Juventus and Bayern Munich all dr…
Stéphane Moulin’s team have beaten Toulouse and St Etienne this week to go level with PSG at the top of Ligue 1 By Adam White and Eric Devin for Get French Football NewsThe term “jolie laide” cannot be directly paired with an English word. It literally…
Patrick Vieira’s team have the second worst attack in Ligue 1 this season yet they are somehow challenging for a place in EuropeBy Adam White and Eric Devin for Get French Football NewsThe visit of Lyon to the Allianz Riviera was not the easiest of mat…
Lyon are best placed to challenge PSG, Patrick Vieira will hope to take Nice into Europe and Caen face a relegation battleBy Adam White for Get French Football NewsAnything other than an eighth Ligue 1 title in PSG’s history would be huge surprise. Alt…
Memphis Depay sealed a last-gasp 3-2 win for Lyon that saved a manager, sparked a brawl and made it clear why this fierce rivalry is welcome in Ligue 1By Adam White and Eric Devin for Get French Football NewsTwo months ago Memphis Depay crashed his las…
Lyon showed their youthful exuberance as they destroyed St Etienne 5-0 but Nabil Fékir also showed some youthful inexperience in the way he celebratedBy Adam White and Eric Devin for Get French Football NewsLe Classique, between Marseille and Paris Sai…
Nantes began the season with two defeats but Claudio Ranieri has developed them into a solid outfit who look likely to challenge for a Europa League spotBy Adam White and Eric Devin for Get French Football NewsClaudio Ranieri’s dismissal from Leicester…
Nice had a dire start to the season – including home and away Champions League defeats by Napoli – but they got back on track in style in their local derby
By Adam White and Eric Devin for Get French Football News
As the Champions League anthem blared at the Stadio San Paolo a month ago, a broad grin spread over Allan Saint-Maximin’s face. “In this moment, I was my younger self,” explained Nice’s new winger. “When I was small I played football on the beaches of French Guyana and I would sing the Champions League anthem.” Nice, seemingly, had reached their promised land. After some shrewd coaching and astute transfer business, a stunning 2016-17 campaign had brought them to the brink of the Champions League proper.
However, after an early season collapse in Ligue 1 and a difficult transfer window, it seemed as if Nice, like Saint-Maximin, were merely dreaming of a Champions League future. They will not be competing in the group stage this week, having been outclassed by Napoli over two legs in the final qualifying round. But their 4-0 routing of champions Monaco in the Cote d’Azur derby this weekend suggests, with Jean Michaël Seri orchestrating proceedings once more, that last season’s third-place finish was no fluke.
When Pascal Dupraz took over as Toulouse manager last March they were 10 points from safety. He pulled off one miracle and is now aiming for another
By Adam White and Eric Devin for Get French Football News
“You’re dirty kids! You’re dirty kids!” was the cry of a joyous Pascal Dupraz as his Toulouse side returned triumphantly to their dressing room. His team had just beaten champions Paris Saint-Germain at the Stade Municipal, having looked doomed to relegation just six months earlier. Toulouse’s win over PSG in September and the 3-1 victory over Monaco a fortnight later marked the peak of an astounding rise for a club that was being remoulded in the image of their violently charismatic coach. A considerable trough followed the peak as they struggled over the winter months but the signing of striker Andy Delort in January has propelled Toulouse back to their compelling best.
This time last year Toulouse found themselves 10 points from safety with just 10 games to play. They were all but down after a 2-1 defeat to Rennes left them second from bottom with only four wins in 28 matches. A meandering, limp campaign led by the aloof Dominique Arribagé had flickered and died, leaving Toulouse coachless, rudderless and hopeless. Club president Oliver Sadran has since admitted “there was no plan B” when Arribagé left.
• Marseille had gone 11 league games without a win
• They play Paris Saint-Germain in Cup final on 21 May
The nine-times Ligue 1 champions Marseille secured their top-flight status with a 1-0 victory at Angers.
Marseille, the only French side to have won the Champions League after lifting the trophy in 1993, had gone 11 league games without a win, slipping as low as 16th in the standings with three matches to play.
Newly promoted French club have undergone a major rebuild and still confounded expectations on their return to the top flight after 21 years
Before hosting Paris Saint-Germain this month, the players of Angers were advised to be on their guard. The champions, they were told, were not just gifted players but also experts in the dark arts. “We were warned that they were sly,” said the centre-back Yohann Andreu.
But the promoted side were taken aback by what followed at the Stade Jean Bouin. A tangle with the PSG midfielder Thiago Motta left a particular impression on Andreu. “At a corner he stood on my foot,” he said, before adding the surprising part. “Straight away he apologised.” Another Angers defender, Romain Thomas, had also been anticipating off-the-ball antics – but not what David Luiz came out with. “At the first few set pieces he came up to me and gave me a friendly little pat as if to ask: ‘Do you enjoy playing against me?’” said Thomas. “It was the first time I’ve come across that on the pitch. He spends the whole time smiling.”
• PSG run out 5-1 winners for their 15th Ligue 1 win of the season
• Second-placed Angers are held to a 1-1 by Bordeaux
Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored twice as Paris St Germain defeated Lyon 5-1 at Parc des Princes on Sunday to move 17 points clear at the top of Ligue 1, while second-placed Angers could only manage a 1-1 draw against Bordeaux.
PSG, who are in Monday’s draw for the last 16 of the Champions League as one of the second seeds, dominated from the start against Lyon and were 2-0 up inside the first 20 minutes. Ibrahimovic scored from close range in the 11th minute and soon afterwards Serge Aurier met Ángel Di María’s free-kick to head the second.
