Ligue 1 Gameweek 15 Review: PSG Continue Their Dominance As Marseille Become The Latest Threat

Ligue 1 Gameweek 15 Review: PSG Continue Their Dominance As Marseille Become The Latest Threat
10:10, 30 Nov 2017

Can PSG be stopped? 

Paris Saint-Germain left it late against Troyes, but they won 2-0 and extended their lead at the top of the table to 10 points. The away side made it difficult for PSG, who were forced into more long shots than they would have anticipated. 

The rested Kylian Mbappe and Adrien Rabiot were introduced with 20 minutes remaining and then four minutes later they finally made the breakthrough from a low shot off Neymar. Edinson Cavani made it more comfortable at the very end of the game to give Unai Emery’s side a 2-0 win. 

It wasn’t pretty, but it was effective and it showed a different characteristic to this team. It’s going to take some stopping this side especially when potential rivals keep dropping points and falling away. 

Nantes stun Monaco 

It was a happy reunion for Claudio Ranieri as he faced his old club Monaco. Substitute Lucas Lima scored an injury time goal to give Nantes a surprise 1-0 victory.

The game was fiercely contested and there was an energy about Nantes that made it difficult for Monaco to find their rhythm. However, there were few clear opportunities and it seemed like it was heading for a draw. 

Adrien Thomasson came closest to breaking the deadlock in the first half, when he forced a finger tip save from Monaco shot-stopper Danijel Subasic. Monaco haven’t won in three games and are now 12 points from the top. 

Marseille become nearest challengers 

Marseille’s 3-0 win at bottom club Metz has put them into second and the closest team to the league leaders. Rudi Garcia’s men were two goals up at the break through Florian Thauvin and Luiz Gustavo, with Lucas Ocampos adding another in the second half. 

They are now unbeaten in their last 10 games domestically, but to call them title challengers still doesn’t quite seem right. Further improvement will be required for them to mount a serious claim, whilst good fortune will also play a huge part. 

Bordeaux thump struggling Saint-Etienne

Bordeaux got off to a flying start against Saint-Etienne, when Alexandre Mendy hit a screamer past keeper Stephane Ruffier inside five minutes. It came via a long ball towards the away side’s five-man defence, but a mixture of poor defensive work and persistence from the striker gave Bordeaux the lead. 

Not to be outdone, Malcom struck another excellent shot from distance to double the hosts advantage just past the half-hour. The Brazilian now has six goals in Ligue 1 this season and he will surely continue to attract interest from outside of France. 

Mendy put the game beyond doubt when he made it 3-0 from a header off Youssouf Sabaly’s cross. Saint-Etienne had more possession, but couldn’t control the excellent counter-attacking plan from Les Girondins. 

“After our disappointments against Marseille and Caen, where we played well without being rewarded, we needed to taste victory again and the players responded superbly,” said Bordeaux coach Jocelyn Gourvennec. “What I thought was interesting was, above and beyond the victory and the scoreline, that despite everything that was at stake the players played their game.” 

Amiens climbing up the table 

Amiens won their third consecutive match with a 2-1 win over Dijon. They were previously victorious three times in their first 12 league games this term. 

Gael Kakuta opened the scoring in the 3rd minute, but Dijon’s Kwon Chang-Hoon equalised after quarter-of-an-hour. Quentin Cornette grabbed the winner in only his second start of the campaign. 

“Not in our wildest dreams did we think we would come close to 17 points at the winter break and we already have 21,” admitted Amiens boss Christophe Pelissier. “What saddened me was our indiscipline, especially in the first half,” added Dijon’s Olivier Dall'Oglio. 

Honourable mentions

Toulouse won for the first time in five games, as they beat Nice 1-0. Les Pitchouns have lost just once at the Stadium Municipal this season, although they are yet to play any of the top five. They have also conceded only three goals in seven games on home turf. 

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