Marseille midfielder Jean Onana (right) celebrates his goal with his teammate Leonardo Balerdi during the match of the 30th day of Ligue 1 against Toulouse, April 21, 20245 in Toulouse (AFP / Valentine CHAPUIS)
Monaco won their duel for 2nd place against Brest (2-0) on Sunday during the 30th day of Ligue 1, which also saw Marseille bounce back after three defeats to snatch a draw (2-2) from Toulouse.
In the other matches of the day, Lille reacted after its European elimination on Thursday by dominating Strasbourg (1-0) and Metz won in a crucial match for maintaining Le Havre (1-0) while Montpellier dominated Reims (2-1) in Champagne.
By going to beat Brest in Finistère, the Monegasques carried out an excellent operation, regaining second place with 55 points against 53, with one more match to play, Wednesday against Lille.
Taking advantage of a moment of error from the Brest defense, Denis Zakaria adjusted the small opposite net with a long shot (40th). Then the Rocher club hit the nail on the head with Takumi Minamino who took a cross from Krépin Diatta (48th). Before having to finish the last five minutes at 10 then 9 against 11 after bloody blows from Eliesse Ben Seghir and Wilfried Singo.
Three days after qualifying for C3, Marseille battled in Toulouse. After goals from Marseillais Jean Onana (38th) and Toulouse’s Rasmus Nicolaisen just before the break (45+2), Yann Gboho believed he would offer victory to Téfécé (83rd). But Faris Moumbagna equalized with a splendid return (90+6). OM are 9th (40 pts), with one match less to play on Wednesday against Nice, and Toulouse 11th (37).
Denis Zakaria congratulated by his teammates after his goal for Monaco against Brest, April 21, 2024 at the Francis-Le-Blé stadium (AFP / FRED TANNEAU)
The start of the match was delayed due to clashes between supporters of the two teams at the Stadium which were quickly brought under control by the police.
– Montpellier safe –
Losc, eliminated on penalties by Aston Villa on Thursday in the Europa Conference League, also recovered, in its stadium, by holding the score against Strasbourg after an early goal from Jonathan David (12).
The Strasbourg side, coached by Patrick Vieira, were however coming off a good period with 10 points taken in the four previous matches. Reason why this defeat does not put them in danger of relegation (13th, 36 points).
Jonathan David, scorer for Lille against Strasbourg, thanks his passer Rémy Cabella, April 21, 2024 at the Pierre-Mauroy stadium (AFP / Sameer Al-DOUMY)
As for Paulo Fonseca’s men, they are definitely having a good second half of the season and could win the coveted qualification for the Champions League. With this victory, they reach 52 points, three lengths behind the Monegasques before the clash between the two teams on Wednesday at Louis-II.
At the bottom of the ranking, Metz struck a big blow by winning at Le Havre, a direct competitor in the race to remain. It was again Georges Mikautadze who carried the Lorraines with, upon returning from the locker room, his eighth goal since his return from Ajax Amsterdam in January (46). He also hit the post a few minutes later.
Metz thus achieves a second consecutive victory and, with 29 points, overtakes Le Havre by one point to take 15th place.
For its part, Montpellier almost ensured its survival by beating Reims on its lawn, thanks to a late goal from Mousa Al-Tamari. The Hérault club now has 36 points, as many as Strasbourg, far ahead of Nantes (14th, 31 points).