the two leaders of the championship, Paris and Marseille, stall before facing each other

A week before the classic PSG-OM, the two clubs stumbled on Saturday October 8. The leader Paris, braked in numerical inferiority, thus drew a match in Reims (0-0), while its dolphin Marseille lost against Ajaccio its invincibility this season in Ligue 1 (1-2).

Four days after being held in check by Benfica (1-1) in the Champions League, a result that looks like relief, Paris-Saint-Germain (1^er26 points) this time conceded a bitter-tasting draw in Reims, weighed down by a red card received by Sergio Ramos (42nd) for protest, which caused controversy.

Reims stops Paris, reassembled against the referee

For this match of the 10^e day at the Auguste-Delaune stadium, Paris played without Lionel Messi, spared, or Neymar, replacing at kick-off. And Kylian Mbappé, clumsy on his rare occasions (33^e), failed to make a difference in a bumpy and sometimes heated match. Worse, Reims jostled Paris, forcing goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma to several crucial saves (35^e52^e).

The summer recruits Carlos Soler and Fabian Ruiz, holders, did not shine and it was another Spaniard, the defender Sergio Ramos, who tipped the meeting in spite of himself: on an innocuous foul whistled full axis, Ramos, Verratti and several Parisians approached the referee to challenge his decision. Pierre Gaillouste first brandished a yellow, then a direct red against Ramos (42^e), arousing the anger of the Parisian camp. “It’s incredible, incredible, it’s starting to be too much. I don’t know if there is something personal against us”stormed the Parisian captain Marquinhos at the break at the microphone of Canal + Foot.

Reduced to ten, Paris could not extricate themselves from the grip of solid Rémois, even if Neymar, who came into play, tried things (63^e67^e). The end of the match was electric: fouls, scuffles between players and distribution of yellow cards… Not reassuring for the Parisians before receiving Benfica on Tuesday to compete for first place in their group in the Champions League, then to challenge OM on Sunday next at the Parc des Princes…

Marseille without spring, Payet centenary

Marseille, for their part, also missed their weekend: unrecognizable and messy, OM conceded their first defeat in L1 this season against poorly ranked Ajaccio, despite the hundredth goal in the French Championship from their captain Dimitri Payet . Far from its European flashes on Tuesday against Sporting Portugal (4-1), the Olympian club fell at the Vélodrome stadium on goals from Bevic Moussiti-Oko (25^e) and Leonardo Balerdi against his camp (47^e), while Payet opened the scoring from the penalty spot (15^e).

“We were not at the level”, railed defender Samuel Gigot at the microphone of Amazon Prime Video. This defeat comes at a bad time for the Olympian team (2^e23 points): this is his second place threatened by his pursuers Lorient and Lens, who play Sunday, before a decisive week, with a second round against Sporting on Wednesday in the Champions League then the classic Ligue 1.

Facing AC Ajaccio, last in the standings before this match, the Marseillais were quickly disillusioned, despite the quick penalty scored by Payet, his hundredth goal in Ligue 1, sixteen years after the first scored with Nantes. Enough to allow the Reunionese to enter the history of the French Championship: he is the first player, according to some counts, to reach both the bar of one hundred goals and one hundred assists in L1. “It’s still an important step in a career”commented the attacking midfielder, referring to “personal satisfaction”.

But then OM stopped playing, Ajaccio striker Bevic Moussiti-Oko equalized (25^e), and the Argentinian defender Leonardo Balerdi fell back into his traps by scoring against his side (47^e), precipitating OM’s first defeat of the season in L1.