Ligue 1 Weekend Review

Result of the week to Les Dogues, for their 3-2 victory over L'OM

This week saw a lot of action in Ligue 1, with high-scoring affairs the norm.

Sunday proved to be the better of the 2 matchdays, but in general there was a heightened pace throughout the league.

My powers of prognostication were a little lacking this week, but you should know better than to believe anything you read on a third-rate blog like this one.

The result of the week goes to Lille, who reversed the thrills of the Trophee des Champions with their excellent 3-2 victory over Marseille.

Saturday, August 27th:

Auxerre 4-1 Ajaccio – The promoted side was severely outmatched, with Auxerre taking 16 shots (8 on frame) compared to their 4 tame efforts (only 1 of which was on target), although things remained relatively well-tempered. Auxerre was dominant throughout, especially Dennis Oliech who directed the offense with precision. Shortly after the half-hour mark Edouard Cisse had his header cleared off the line by Ajaccio defender Yoann Poulard, but just 2 minutes later Kamel Chafni had opened the scoring. That was followed by a brace from Alain Traore (75th and 80th minutes; I TOLD YOU he would score in this match!), although in the 83rd minute Ajaccio received some brief hope when Ilan found the back of the net. It was too little, too late, and the destruction was complete in the 90th minute when Anthony Le Tallec got his name on the scoresheet.

Evian 0-1 Dijon – The battle between the promoted sides was relatively even despite Evian’s advantage in possession (59-41%) and shots taken (13 to 7, albeit with only 4 of those efforts on frame). Gaffer Bernard Casoni may be rethinking his decision to start Stephan Anderson over Quentin Westberg in net, as the former was beaten in the 68th minute when Brice Jovial sent home a cross from Mehdi Courgnaud. Both sides had opportunities in the second half, but neither could capitalize.

Lorient 2-1 Nancy – Lorient dominated this matched holding 66% of the possession while taking 18 shots (8 on target) and sending in 34 crosses (compared to only 8 for Nancy), but it took a stoppage-time goal to secure the full points. Nancy made their intent clear early when Samba Diakite forced a save from Lorient netminder Fabien Audard in the 8th minute, and they opened the scoring in the 11th minute when Djamel Bakar finished off a pass from Lossemy Karaboue. That woke up Les Merlus, and Kevin Monnet-Paquet had a volley that drew an excellent save from Nancy GK Damien Gregorini, while Mathias Autret sent an effort into the side-netting. Those same two players continued to be dangerous as the second half began, but the breakthrough didn’t come until the 78th minute when Arnold Mvuemba found the back of the net on a well-struck free-kick. The match-winner arrived in the 92nd minute with some excellent work from Monnet-Paquet, with his shot taking a slight deflection on its way in.

Nice 0-0 Brest – Another very even match saw the deserved result as the sides shared the points, with Nice dominant early while Brest responded well as things progressed. The first-half proceedings saw more shots blocked by defenders than were saved by the goalkeepers, but the latter were very important late as the tempo increased. There was also controversy in the second half, as a cross from Fabrice Abriel saw Xavier Pentecote find the back of the net with a header, with the latter being incorrectly ruled offside to the dismay of Nice.

Valenciennes 1-2 Bordeaux – Les Girondins needed two late goals to get their first win of the season, which wasn’t a surprise as this match took a while to develop. The first good opportunity came in the 27th minute, and it saw Mathieu Dossevi finish off a pass from Gael Danic. Valenciennes should have been up 2-0 just 5 minutes later, but Gregory Pujol was unable to get on the end of a good cross from Dossevi. The second half opened up with a shot from Pujol that forced a fantastic save from Bordeaux GK Cedric Carrasso, while at the other end of the pitch Valenciennes netminder Nicolas Penneteau turned away Fahid ben Khalfallah. In the 72nd minute Dossevi missed his brace with a missed sitter, and that would come back to haunt his side. The 81st minute saw a shot from Yoann Gouffran punched clear by Penneteau, only to fall to Abdou Traore for the rebound, while the match-winner arrived in the 92nd minute when a flick from Cheick Diabate was turned in by Anthony Modeste.

Lyon 2-1 Montpellier – Les Gones put a stop to the early-season dominance of Montpellier despite being outplayed for long stretches of time. The early going saw a bicycle kick from Olivier Giroud denied by an incredible save from Lyon GK Hugo Lloris, while at the other end of the pitch a volley from Bafetimbi Gomis was denied by Montpellier GK Laurent Pionnier. The second half opened with Miralem Pjanic sending home a volley on a cross from Michel Bastos to open the scoring. Lloris produced another fantastic save to deny John Utaka, while being relieved to see Younes Belhanda hit the post. The latter damaged the hopes of his side in the 82nd minute when he received a straight RC for a bad foul on Pjanic, and just a minute later the aggrieved player provided a perfect cross to be finished off by Jeremy Pied. Montpellier finally got their goal in the 91st minute when Henri Bedimo finished off a good pass from Giroud, but it wasn’t enough to rescue the points.

Sunday, August 28th:

Rennes 3-2 Caen – An evenly-matched thriller saw Stade Rennais get off to the perfect start in the 5th minute when a Julien Feret free-kick deflected off the wall only to be headed in by Abdoulrazak Boukari. The equalizer should have arrived in the 11th minute when Jires Kembo-Ekoko brought down Alexandre Raineau in the box, but M’Baye Niang put his PK straight at Rennes GK Benoit Costil. The action slowed until the 41st minute, when an excellent ball from Jonathan Pitroipa provided Kembo-Ekoko with the easy finish. The match seemed out of hand in the 45th minute when a free-kick from Feret was played in off the knee of Kader Mangane, and the second half began with Pitroipa hitting the woodwork. Caen began to claw back in the 58th minute when a header from Kandia Traore was saved by Costil only to fall to Thomas Heurtaux for the rebound, and 3 minutes later Frederic Bulot finished off a long ball from Traore. Unfortunately for Caen, those proved to be their best opportunities of the half and Rennes escaped with the full points.

Sochaux 2-1 Saint-Etienne – Les Lionceaux were shocked in their 4-0 home loss to Metalist Kharkiv in the Europa League, and they remedied things with a clinical victory in this match. In just the 2nd minute Sloan Privat forced a great save from ASSE netminder Stephane Ruffier, and they broke through in the 6th minute when Ryad Boudebouz dribbled the defense for a good finish. Les Verts didn’t put their heads down, and they were boosted by a fantastic volley from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the 35th minute that found the upper 90. Unfortunately, that was followed shortly by Fabien Lemoine taking down Sebastien Corchia in the box, with Boudebouz finishing off the resulting PK. Sochaux continued their pressure in the second half, with a free-kick from Marvin Martin deflecting off Kevin Anin to force an outstanding save from Ruffier. ASSE were seemingly undone in the 66th minute when Paulao saw a straight RC for a nasty tackle from behind on Modibo Maiga, but they proved up to the task even at a disadvantage. They could have tied the proceedings in the 84th minute on a volley from Idriss Saadi, but his goal was waved off due to a handball.

Toulouse 1-3 Paris Saint-Germain – The club from the capital needed two very late goals to steal the full points in what proved to be an incredibly exciting match. While Toulouse opened with a shot from Paulo Machado that was saved by PSG netminder Salvatore Sirigu, at the other end of the pitch Jeremy Menez saw his shot hit both posts before being put over the endline. The first goal arrived in the 39th minute when Etienne Capoue headed home a corner from Franck Tabanou, and the latter would have had a goal of his own in the 41st minute if not for a good save from Sirigu. The second half saw Toulouse GK Ali Ahamada make very good saves on Marcos Ceara and Menez, but he was unable to stop Kevin Gameiro from finishing off a good pass from Javier Pastore in the 56th minute. After Nene hit the crossbar on the hour mark, the sides settled into a more measured pace in the hopes of breaking the deadlock. That didn’t come until the 90th minute when Mevlut Erding (an 80th-minute substitute) finished off a pass from the excellent Pastore, and the victory was secured in the 93rd minute when Menez was rewarded with a volley after excellent work from Pastore and Erding.

Lille 3-2 Marseille – In what proved to be the best match of the weekend, Les Dogues and OM played out another hard-fought battle that saw their stars rise to the top. The match opened with a shot from Andre Ayew that drew a great save from Lille GK Mickael Landreau, but it was Lille who scored first against the run of play, with Moussa Sow finishing off a cross from Frank Beria in the 15th minute. That turned out to be the best opportunity of the half for either side, but after the break things began quickly, with Loic Remy hitting the post. The equalizer arrived in the 57th minute when Mathieu Valbuena lashed home a great strike that took a slight deflection off Lille defender Aurelien Chedjou, and the former completed his brace in the 63rd minute when a Benoit Cheyrou free-kick was saved by Landreau only to be slammed home on the follow-up. That lead didn’t last long, as in the 66th minute Chedjou took a pass from Dimitri Payet and put his shot through the legs of Marseille GK Steve Mandanda. The comeback was complete in the 75th minute when Rod Fanni brought down Eden Hazard in the box, and Sow completed his brace by finding the back of the net on the resulting PK.

So, after Matchday 4 we have:
Top 4: (1) Montpellier (9 points, +6 GD); (2) Lyon (8 points, +3 GD); (3) Paris Saint-Germain (7 points, +2); (4) Toulouse (7 points; +2 GD)
GSTGC award: Miralem Pjanic (Lyon)
Correct Friday preview results predictions: 0 out of 3
Correct Friday preview scores predictions: 0 out of 3

In my defense, I did get all of my “other action” predictions correct!