PSG will have to wait a little longer before being crowned French champions for the 12the times. The Parisian club, winner in Lorient (4-1) on Wednesday April 24, needed to be titled with four days remaining that Monaco did not win, in the evening, against Lille. But a goal from Youssouf Fofana delivered the Principality team and consolidated its runner-up position, 11 points behind PSG, with 12 points remaining at stake.
The Parisian players will not be traumatized. They have the opportunity to win this new title on Saturday at home, in front of their home crowd, against Le Havre. In the meantime, Luis Enrique’s men did the job, in a late match in the 29e day of Ligue 1, dominating Lorient, one of the teams in difficulty at the moment, on the verge of relegation (17e).
After a slow start to the match, PSG accelerated, carried by Ousmane Dembélé who deceived Lorient goalkeeper Yvon Mvogo with a low left foot strike (1- 0, 19e). Dembélé, who has not always had the same composure in front of goal, even scored in the second half a fourth goal in his last three starts by taking a cross from Kylian Mbappé, who had erased the hake defense with a virtuoso dribble along the goal line (3-0, 60e). Le Moustoir could not repress an exclamation of admiration. The hat-trick was not far away when Dembélé saw his shot graze Mvogo’s right post (85e).
In the meantime, Mbappé had already scored (2-0, 22e). And he also scored a double by curling his shot towards the far post (4-1, 90e), just to have the last word after the Lorient goal signed by Mohamed Bamba (3-1, 73e).
“Until we finish the school year, we cannot get the final grade”said the Parisian coach, Luis Enrique, when asked about this Ligue 1 title which is reaching out to his team. “But what’s happening is exciting”, recognized the Spaniard who is aiming for the quadruple – Champions Trophy already acquired, championship, Coupe de France in which PSG is in the final, and Champions League where the club must face Dortmund in the semi-final. In League 1 “we are close to victory, however there is still a month before the end of the season, we still have things to accomplish, seven or eight games, to have the eighth [la finale de Ligue des champions]. We have to stay focused”.
Monaco closer and closer to the Champions League
Hundreds of kilometers further and two hours later, Monaco extended its unbeaten streak in Ligue 1 to eight games after its victory against Lille (1-0) which allowed it to bend its direct opponents one by one in the race for direct qualification in the Champions League. After Brest (2-0) last Sunday, it was Lille who suffered the law of the Principality team, at the end of a pleasant and lively game.
The goal of French international Youssouf Fofana, who is returning to form at the best moment of the season, with Euro-2024 in his sights, therefore sealed the match and certainly Monaco’s European future in the Champions League, which he hasn’t seen since the 2018-2019 season. Adi Hütter’s men now have a six-point lead over their evening opponents, who remain one point behind Brest and third place.
“Beating this great Lille team is a new step takenappreciated the Monaco coach. It was a big shock between two great teams. And I congratulate my team, of whom I am very proud. »
A draw that doesn’t suit anyone between Marseille and Nice
In the third and final late match of the evening, no winner, no loser and not really a happy one either: Marseille, reduced to ten men throughout the second half, and Nice drew 2-2, a result which is not enough to bring the Marseillais closer to European places, and which barely consolidates the 5e Place des Aiglons. OM are now eighth, tied with Lyon, before the reception of Lens (6e) Sunday and Atalanta Thursday May 2 in the semi-final first leg of the Europa League.
The Olympians scored through Jonathan Clauss (1-1, 31e) and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (2-1, 56e on penalty), and the Niçois, still fifth in the standings, by Terem Moffi (1-0, 13e) and Melvin Bard (2-2, 72e).