Karim Benzema scored twice for seven-time reigning champions Lyon in a 3-1 victory at Le Mans on Saturday to boost their French title chances and ensure they finished the weekend at the top of the table.
Bordeaux, meanwhile, warned they were still up for a fight with a last-gasp 1-0 victory at home to Nancy to give them second spot thanks to Marouane Chamakh, three points behind the leaders.
Lille are also in the title hunt and their 2-0 win at Nantes left them fourth while Toulouse drew 0-0 at lowly Caen in the late match for fifth place.
Third-placed Marseille were due to travel to St Etienne yesterday without president Pape Diouf who had an emergency eye operation on Saturday.
Benzema’s 13th and 14th league goals for Lyon ended a mini-drought as he had not found the net since Feb. 21 but hapless Le Mans keeper Pele, who will be leaving the club at the end of the season, hardly gave his future employers a good impression.
Lyon boss Claude Puel, who has endured huge criticism lately, admitted afterwards: “The result was flattering.”
Former Rangers striker Jean-Claude Darcheville scored after just 26 seconds in Valenciennes’ 2-0 victory over Auxerre to register the fastest goal in the French championship this season. It beat the previous fastest goal of 52 seconds, which was scored by Thomas Kahlenberg for Auxerre against Le Havre on Feb. 21.
Another striker who has been catching the eye lately is Lille’s Michel Bastos, who scored his 13th goal of the season from the spot in their 2-0 win at Nantes.
Yesterday PSG hosted Nice hoping to keep in touch with the leading teams.
SS Lazio on Monday fired the far-right sympathizer who handles their eagle mascot after he posted online a series of videos and pictures of his erect penis. Falconer Juan Bernabe, who has been present at Lazio home matches with Olimpia the eagle since the 2010-2011 season, posted the footage on social media after having surgery on Saturday to implant a penile prosthesis to improve his sexual performance. Lazio said that they had “terminated, with immediate effect” their relationship with Bernabe “due to the seriousness of his conduct,” adding that they were “shocked” by the images. The Serie A club added that Bernabe’s dismissal
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Dubbed a “motorway for cyclists” where avid amateurs can chase Tadej Pogacar up mountains teeming with the highest concentration of professional cyclists per square kilometer in the world, Spain’s Costa Blanca has forged a new reputation for itself in the past few years. Long known as the ideal summer destination for those in search of sun, sea and sand, the stretch of coast between Valencia and Alicante now has a winter vocation too. During the season break in December and January, the region experiences an invasion of cyclists. Star names such as three-time Tour de France winner Pogacar, Remco Evenepoel and Julian Alaphilippe
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