Ligue 1 Weekend Review

Result of the week to Les Dogues.

This week saw more on-field shenanigans, as cranky officials around Ligue 1 handed out record numbers of cards resulting in several dismissals. However, despite the large number of cards and numerous high-scoring matches, we were once again left without a weekly winner of the GSTGC award. The result of the week goes to Lille, who posted consecutive  4-0 victories on Thursday (over Saint-Etienne) and Sunday (over Monaco) to move into 3rd place. Due to various swine-flu and Champions League-related issues, clubs have played anywhere from 15 to 17 matches, with most clubs having played 16 at this time.

Thursday, December 12th:

Lille 4-0 Saint-Etienne – Lille came off the block quickly in this match, and their aggression paid off in the form of 3 points. In the 5th minute Chedjou took a speculative shot from 35 yards that went wide, but it was a clear signal of intent. Saint-Etienne responded with a miss from Sako in the 6th minute and a shot from Mirallas in the 17th minute that forced a save from Lille GK Landreau. The action then shifted back to the other end as Debuchy sent a header wide in the 22nd minute and Hazard shot off-target in the 25th minute. The first goal came in the 33rd minute when Frau finished off a nice pass from Mavuba on a quick counter-attack. Momentum shifted once again, as efforts on either side of the half saw Mirallas and Landrin shoot wide. In the 58th minute N’Daw fouled Gervinho in the box and Cabaye stepped up to calmly slot home the resulting PK. Gervinho then got a goal of his own in the 72nd minute off a corner kick to slam the door. Saint-Etienne went down to 10 men in the 81st minute when Benalouane saw his 2nd YC, and Rami sent home the resulting free-kick for emphasis. Les Verts could only manage a weak shot from Payet in the 90th minute that was easily saved by Landreau.

Toulouse 2-0 Sochaux – The other Thursday match was somewhat more equitable as both clubs looked disinterested throughout the match. Toulouse had Nounkeu (9th minute) and Machado (16th minute) shoot off-target before playmaker Gignac woke up to force a save from Sochaux GK Richert in the 29th minute. The first opportunity for the latter’s teammates came in the 41st minute when Gavanon was stopped by Toulouse GK Loustallot (no, I have no idea who he is either). Almost immediately after the restart Gignac broke through on a counter-attack to slot his shot home for the opening goal, and he had his brace just 2 minutes later with a wicked strike into the bottom corner from outside the box. Sochaux began to push in an attempt to climb back into the match, but Nogueira (76th minute) was off-target while Sverkos (80th minute) and Gavanon (90th minute) were stopped by Loustallot.

Saturday, December 12th:

Le Mans 2-1 Valenciennes – In a match that was fairly even statistically, Le Mans should feel lucky to have come away with the 3 points after playing with 10 men for the entire second half and getting a very late match-winner. Regardless of how it was accomplished, the win provides new gaffer Arnaud Cormier a good start to his campaign after Le Mans fired Paulo Duarte (who is apparently also the coach of the Burkina Faso national team). The match started slowly, and the first action came in the 16th minute when Corchia had his shot stopped by Valenciennes GK Assembe. In the 25th minute Danic lashed a volley barely wide, and he would see his club down 1-0 just 3 minutes later as Corchia headed home a cross from Maiga. Danic would get his goal, however, finishing off a pass from ben Khalfallah in the 32nd minute for the equalizer. Le Mans looked to be in trouble when Maiga saw his 2nd YC (for a nasty tackle) just before the intermission, and they were almost made to pay in the 56th minute when Bong had his shot cleared off the line by Joao Paulo. Danic thought he had a brace in the 71st minute when he sent in a well-taken free-kick, but Le Mans GK Ovono made an excellent save. It proved to be an important one, as Le Tallec managed to succeed where Danic had failed, getting the match-winner in second half stoppage time on a free-kick.

Lens 2-0 Nice – Lens took 24 shots in this match, putting 9 of them on goal, and their offensive display earned them the 3 points. In the 9th minute Roudet saw his header saved by Nice GK Ospina, who also turned away a header from Yahia in the 16th minute. Lens would not be denied for long as Akale sent home a pass from Demont in the 19th minute for the opening goal. The former turned provider in the 36th minute, sending in a cross for Maoulida to head home. Nice were virtually finished in the 48th minute when Bagayoko  received a straight RC for stomping on Kovacevic, and Lens pushed on with Roudet forcing a save from Ospina in the 51st minute and Boukhari hitting the crossbar in the 60th minute. However, Nice had 2 late chances to make things interesting with Lens GK Runje turning away Paisley in the 81st minute and Fae in the 88th minute.

Marseille 2-0 Boulogne – Perhaps motivated by their disappointment at crashing out of the Champions League, Marseille came out with aggression, taking 25 shots and maintaining 78% of the possession. In the 12th minute a poor clearance from Dembele lead to a shot from Gonzalez that was well-saved by Boulogne GK Bedenik. The next moments featured a seemingly manic Cheyrou, who shot just wide in the 19th minute before eliciting saves from Bedenik in the 23rd and 32nd minutes. The first opportunity for Boulogne came in the 41st minute, when Karuru was stopped by Marseille GK Mandanda. Just after the restart a Cheyrou corner was headed home by Heinze for a well-deserved lead. The next goal came in the 54th minute when Gonzalez was brought down in the box by Marcq and Taiwo finished off the resulting PK (after Gonzalez ceded the opportunity, perhaps still ruing his miss from the spot against Real Madrid in the CL last week). In the 83rd minute, late sub ben Arfa (who has been sidelined this season due to a poor attitude) forced a save from Bedenik, and he was then the victim of a poor tackle from Adefemi, who saw his 2nd YC for the foul.

Nancy 1-2 Rennes – Nancy outplayed Rennes but were unable to overcome their own mistakes in gifting the 3 points to the latter club. Nancy started quickly, as Alo’o Efoulou forced a save from Rennes GK Douchez in the 2nd minute and Feret volleyed barely over the crossbar in the 19th minute. Alo’o Efoulou was turned away again in the 31st minute by an excellent save from Douchez, but Feret would send home a Lalonga free-kick in the 41st minute to give Nancy the lead. However, the second half started disastrously when a Marveaux corner saw an attempted clearance result in an OG header from one of the Flying Traores. Feret renewed his efforts in an attempt to retake the lead, drawing a save from Douchez in the 60th minute and earning a PK in the 63rd minute. Unfortunately for Nancy, the Luiz PK was turned away by Douchez and they went down to 10 men when Macaluso earned 2 YCs within 1 minute for a foul and then vociferous dissent regarding the initial YC. Marveaux took advantage a short time later when he sent home a powerful shot in the 70th minute, and the rest of the match saw few opportunities for either side.

Lorient 0-0 Auxerre – Despite the scoreline this was a fairly entertaining match as both clubs had the opportunity to move within 1 point of the top of the table and played accordingly. In the 3rd minute Jelen drew a save from Lorient GK Audard, who also stopped Niculae in the 8th minute. The action moved back and forth until the 30th minute when Gameiro was stopped by Auxerre GK Sorin. The former then lobbed a shot over the latter in the 40th minute only to have it cleared off the line by Auxerre defender Coulibaly. The second half also provided several chances, the first of which was a shot from Jelen that was stopped by Audard. In the 70th minute a pass from Oliech was punched out by Audard, but only as far as Chafni, who managed to send his header over the crossbar. Lorient had the better of the match after that point, with a Vahirua free-kick eliciting a great save from Sorin in the 76th minute, who also produced an excellent stop on Gameiro in the 83rd minute. Koscielny then hit the bar in the 88th minute, while Sorin produced a final save to preserve the draw in the 92nd minute on a Sosa free-kick.

Sunday, December 13th:

Monaco 0-4 Lille – Lille put on their second masterclass of the week, bossing Monaco all over the pitch to the tune of 22 shots (with 8 on goal). In the 4th minute Alonso shot wide, while Perez volleyed over the crossbar in the 19th minute, but the best chance for Monaco came in the 25th minute when they had a 3-on-1 only for Park to take a selfish shot that was turned away by Lille GK Landreau. The first goal came in the 39th minute when Monaco defender Puygrenier fluffed his clearance and watched Dumont set up De Melo for the easy finish. The next goal should have come in the 45th minute, but a shot from Debuchy was turned away with a great save from Monaco GK Ruffier. Lille, however, were relentless, with Hazard shooting over the crossbar in the 47th minute and Dumont shooting wide in the 54th minute. The next goal came just 1 minute later when De Melo completed his brace by heading home a cross from Cabaye. In the 71st minute Gervinho was fouled in the box by Alonso, and Cabaye sent home the resulting PK despite Ruffier getting a hand to the spot-kick. The destruction was complete in the 86th minute when Aubameyang finished off a pass from Frau.

Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 Saint-Etienne – PSG came out with some renewed vigor in an effort to keep climbing up the table, and managed 17 shots (10 on goal) and 9 corners to give them ample opportunities for the win. In the 6th minute Erdinq had his header saved by Saint-Etienne GK Janot, who then made an excellent save on a volley from Sessegnon in the 10th minute. The goal came just 1 minute later when a shot from Clement was dropped by Janot at the feet of Luyindula for an easy finish. The match was almost immediately out of reach for Les Verts as a long ball into the box was sent home by Sessegnon amongst a crowd of defenders in the 13th minute. The final goal came in the 39th minute when a cross from Jallet was headed home by Erdinq, and PSG went into a defensive mode to preserve the 3 points. Saint-Etienne had only 1 opportunity in the entire second half, with Gelson shooting wide in the 50th minute.

Sochaux 1-0 Grenoble – Grenoble saw their form return to early-season levels as they failed to earn any points from this match despite statistical equality. In the 8th minute Matsui had a cross/shot saved by Sochaux GK Richert, while the latter was relieved to see a corner from Ljuboja bounce off the crossbar in the 15th minute. The lone goal of the match came in the 29th minute when Mikari volleyed home a cross from Dalmat. The action was then end-to-end as Martin was stopped by Grenoble GK Le Crom in the 36th minute and Matsui earned a PK on the other end of the pitch in the 43rd minute. Unfortunately for Grenoble, the spot-kick from Ljuboja was stopped by Richert, who then stopped the former from the run of play after the restart. In the 59th minute a volley Butin was stopped by a great save from Le Crom, who was then happy to see a Martin free-kick hit the post in the 67th minute. Mikari almost had a brace in the 77th minute when his volley was barely turned wide by Grenoble defender Paillot, and neither club had any further opportunities.

Toulouse 0-1 Montpellier – The southern club continued their excellent season, holding on to the lead provided by an early goal to earn the 3 points and move into 2nd place in the table. In the 4th minute a free-kick from Costa was saved by Toulouse GK Valverde, but the latter was unable to stop a powerful shot from Camara in the 11th minute that found the top corner. Toulouse began to press, with Gignac skimming the post in the 14th minute and Sirieix shooting just over the crossbar in the 30th minute. The second half began the same way, with a header from Machado saved by Montpellier GK Jourdren. However, the remainder of the match saw Montpellier regain the upper had, with Montano heading wide (57th minute) and Costa shooting into the side-netting (68th minute). Toulouse had a final chance to earn the equalizer, but Sissoko put his shot straight at Jourdren in the 82nd minute.

Lyon 0-1 Bordeaux – Although the offensively-minded clubs combined for only 6 shots on goal (and more fouls than total shots), the frenetic pace made for one of the better matches of the weekend. In the 5th minute Lopez put his shot over the crossbar, and he repeated the feat in the 9th minute. Chamakh thought he had scored in the 30th minute only to see his header tipped around the post by Lyon GK Lloris. Bordeaux started the second half more quickly as Fernando volleyed just wide in the 58th minute and Chalme was stopped by Lloris in the 63rd minute. As the action shifted again, Gonalons saw his shot punched clear by Bordeaux GK Carrasso in the 71st minute. The best chance of the match (to that point) came in the 77th minute when Chamakh was faced with an empty net and managed to send his shot 10 yards over the crossbar. The youngster was determined to score, but found his header turned away once again by Lloris in the 81st minute. While Gomis was stopped by Carrasso in the 83rd minute, Chamakh finally got his goal in the 86th minute on a well-taken header from a Gourcuff cross. Lyon had their chances to equalize, but Makoun shot high in the 90th minute and his free-kick in the 92nd minute was wasted.

So, after Matchday 17 the top of the table looks like this: (1) Bordeaux, with 34 points on an 11-1-4 record and a +15 goal differential; (2) Montpellier, with 30 points on a 9-3-3 record and a +7 goal differential; (3) Lille, with 28 points on an 8-4-5 record and a +11 goal differential; and (4) Marseille, with 28 points on an 8-4-3 record and a +11 goal differential.