Montpellier Herault reclaimed the Ligue 1 lead with a 3-1 win over AC Ajaccio on Wednesday as Olympique Lyonnais fell 1-0 at Stade Malherbe Caen for their first loss of the season.
Lyon had climbed atop the standings last weekend, but they lost their status as the only undefeated team in the league after goalkeeper Hugo Lloris was sent off for bringing down Romain Hamouma just before halftime and midfielder Benjamin Nivet converted the ensuing penalty.
Montpellier took full advantage, going up 2-0 at Ajaccio after just nine minutes when winger Remy Cabella headed home the opener and Chile midfielder Marco Estrada doubled the lead direct from a corner kick.
Nigerian forward John Utaka added the third with a low shot in the 35th minute, before Mehdi Mostefa pulled one back for Ajaccio with a header in the 53rd minute.
Montpellier have a two-point cushion over Stade Rennais, Lyon, Paris Saint-Germain and Toulouse, who wasted a chance to go level on 16 points by drawing 1-1 at AS Saint-Etienne.
Struggling Olympique de Marseille earned their first win in the league this season by beating promoted Evian Thonon Gaillard 2-0 to move out of the relegation zone.
Paris Saint-Germain needed a 71st-minute penalty by Kevin Gameiro to secure their 2-1 win against OGC Nice, after a handball from midfielder Fabrice Abriel.
In Lorient, Innocent Emeghara converted a rebound in the 23rd minute after AJ Auxerre goalkeeper Olivier Sorin had parried a long-range drive from Alaixys Romao. Auxerre forward Dennis Oliech equalized to make it 1-1 with a powerful strike in the 62nd minute.
Sochaux-Montbeliard were routed 6-2 by Stade Rennais despite equalizing twice.
Dijon FCO forward Christophe Mandanne converted a penalty in the 33rd minute to give the hosts a 1-0 victory, after Stade Brestois 29 defender Santiago Gentiletti was sent off for tripping Gregory Thil.
AS Nancy-Lorraine forward Benjamin Moukandjo scored for the hosts in the 15th minute with an assist from Jordan Loties, but Valenciennes equalized with a goal from Renaud Cohade in the 82nd minute.
RECORD DEFEAT: The Shanghai-based ‘Oriental Sports Daily’ said the drubbing was so disastrous, and taste so bitter, that all that is left is ‘numbness’ Chinese soccer fans and media rounded on the national team yesterday after they experienced fresh humiliation in a 7-0 thrashing to rivals Japan in their opening Group C match in the third phase of Asian qualifying for the 2026 World Cup. The humiliation in Saitama on Thursday against Asia’s top-ranked team was China’s worst defeat in World Cup qualifying and only a goal short of their record 8-0 loss to Brazil in 2012. Chinese President Xi Jinping once said he wanted China to host and even win the World Cup one day, but that ambition looked further away than ever after a
Taiwanese badminton superstar Lee Yang broke down in tears after publicly retiring from the sport on Sunday. The two-time Olympic gold medalist held a retirement ceremony at the Taipei Arena after the final matches of the Taipei Open. Accompanied by friends, family and former badminton partners, Lee burst into tears while watching a video celebrating key moments in his professional sporting career that also featured messages from international players such as Malaysia’s Teo Ee Yi, Hong Kong’s Tang Chun-man, and Indonesia’s Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan. “I hope that in the future when the world thinks about me, they will
Former Formosa Dreamers player Ilkan Karaman was killed in a traffic accident in Datca, Turkey, Turkish media reported yesterday. He was 34. The former Turkish national team player was reportedly hit by a car, the driver of which was allegedly drunk, while he was standing on a sidewalk, Turkish newspaper Sozcu reported. Karaman and his friends were on their way to the beach town of Dalaman to go scuba diving when they stopped at a gas station to buy gasoline, it reported. Karaman was hit by the car while waiting on a sidewalk as his friends were buying gasoline, it
ANKLE PROBLEM: Taiwan’s Ye Hong-wei and Lee Chia-hsin had a disappointing end to their tournament after an injury forced them out of their mixed doubles semi-final Taiwanese badminton ace Tai Tzu-ying on Friday was knocked out in the women’s singles quarter-finals at her last Taipei Open. The world No. 3 lost 21-18, 16-21, 22-24 to Putri Kusuma Wardani of Indonesia in a match that stretched 68 minutes at the Taipei Arena. Despite her higher ranking, Tai said she was not too sad about the loss, given her struggle with a lingering knee injury. “Wins and losses are just part of the game. Actually, I think I’m going to lose every single match considering my condition now,” said the five-time champion of the Super 300 event, who has announced plans
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