Dimitar Berbatov’s delightful goal gave AS Monaco a 1-0 win against OGC Nice on Sunday to leave Paris Saint-Germain’s title celebrations on ice, while AC Ajaccio’s relegation was confirmed with defeat at SC Bastia.
Berbatov’s nonchalant fifth-minute lob was the only goal of the Cote d’Azur derby at the Stade Louis II and the victory got Claudio Ranieri’s side back on track after their shock exit from the Coupe de France to En Avant de Guingamp in the semi-finals on Wednesday last week.
A third successive league win for the principality club means they are now certain to finish in the top three and qualify for next season’s UEFA Champions League.
Photo: AFP
They are eight points clear of third-placed LOSC Lille Metropole, who were held 0-0 at Olympique de Marseille, and seven behind leaders PSG, who do not host Evian Thonon Gaillard until Wednesday having beaten Olympique Lyonnais 2-1 in the Coupe de la Ligue final on Saturday.
Even if PSG win that game, they will not secure a second consecutive Ligue 1 title until next weekend at the earliest.
For all the money spent last summer, finishing second would be an excellent achievement for Monaco, who were in Ligue 2 a year ago, but coach Ranieri’s future has been the subject of much speculation recently.
However, the 62-year-old Italian revealed that Vadim Vasilyev, the club’s vice president, had reassured him over his position after the match.
“You know what he said to me? That I will be here next season,” Ranieri said.
The win will come as a relief to him, although it will be best remembered for Berbatov’s outrageous early goal.
The Bulgarian controlled a pass from Joao Moutinho on the left of the penalty area near the byline, looked up and nonchalantly lobbed the ball over Nice goalkeeper David Ospina and into the net at the far post for his sixth goal in France since arriving from Fulham in the January transfer window.
Monaco had chances to increase their advantage in the first half, with Valere Germain striking the post, before Ospina was forced into a good save from a free-kick by his compatriot James Rodriguez.
However they could not get a second goal and they were fortunate not to concede an equalizer midway through the second half when Danijel Subasic saved well from substitute Dario Cvitanich, and Mathieu Bodmer’s header from the resulting corner was blocked by Subasic and then cleared by Mounir Obbadi right on the line.
The Nice players appealed for a goal to be given, but the officials waved play on and Claude Puel’s side are without a win in five matches.
Ajaccio made the trip across Corsica for the derby against Bastia knowing they had to win to stand any chance of further postponing their inevitable relegation, but a 2-1 loss left them 15 points from safety with only 12 points left to play for.
“We’ve known for a long time that we would go down, so this changes nothing,” Ajaccio coach Christian Bracconi said. “We were condemned on November 14 — now it’s done. We’ve been living with the idea for weeks.”
Their descent to Ligue 2 after three seasons in the top flight caused predictable delight amongst the fans of their island rivals Bastia.
While second-from-bottom Valenciennes moved closer to the drop after a 6-2 drubbing by Nantes, Sochaux-Montbeliard’s hopes of surviving the drop received a huge boost with a 1-0 win at Stade de Reims.
There were angry scenes after Valenciennes’ defeat, with disgruntled fans staging a protest.
Sochaux, managed since October last year by Herve Renard, who led Zambia to 2012 Africa Cup of Nations glory, are on 33 points, two behind Coupe de France finalists En Avant de Guingamp, trounced 5-1 by Girondins de Bordeaux, with Cheik Diabate bagging a first-half hat-trick.
In an afternoon when goals came thick and fast, Lorient and Montpellier Herault shared the spoils in a 4-4 draw.
Soccer officials yesterday offered “full support and assistance” to the Iranian team in Australia for the AFC Women’s Asian Cup after the US and Israel launched massive attacks on their homeland. Iran’s 26-strong squad arrived on the Gold Coast days before the strikes on Saturday killed supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as Washington and Tel Aviv seek to topple the Islamic republic. They are due to open their tournament today against South Korea. The AFC in a statement said it “continues to closely monitor the recent developments in the Middle East during this challenging period.” “The AFC’s foremost priority remains the welfare, safety and
EVERY DAY A VICTORY: Players on the women’s team faced pressure from society just getting out onto the field as they prepare for their first Women’s Asian Cup game today Bangladesh’s national soccer team face daunting odds at their first-ever Women’s Asian Cup, but have already scored a major victory by qualifying. In the South Asian nation of 170 million, social stigma, family expectations, poverty and religious hardliners have long relegated women and girls to sports sidelines. The first women’s soccer league matches took place in 2011 and the squad, known to fans as the Red and Green, have kept pressing forward despite deeply embedded prejudices. “Many more girls would have joined us if the community had been even slightly supportive,” captain Afeida Khandaker told AFP ahead of her side’s March 3
ROAD RASH: Marc Marquez retired after a crash, marking the first time after 88 consecutive races stretching back to 2021 that a Ducati bike failed to make the podium Marco Bezzecchi yesterday won the MotoGP season-opening grand prix in Thailand from pole position as defending world champion Marc Marquez retired late with a buckled wheel. Aprilia’s Bezzecchi led from start to finish to top the podium in Buriram, with KTM’s Pedro Acosta second and Trackhouse’s Raul Fernandez third. Ducati’s Marquez is chasing a record-equaling eighth world title this season, but he exited the race in dramatic fashion while in fourth place with five laps to go. The Spaniard, who started from second on the grid, took a corner wide, with the jolt to his bike dislodging the rear tire, badly damaging his
Liverpool on Tuesday suffered an embarrassing 2-1 defeat at Wolverhampton Wanderers as Andre’s stoppage-time strike sealed a dramatic victory for the English Premier League’s bottom club. Arne Slot’s side fell behind to Rodrigo Gomes’ strike in the closing stages at Molineux. Mohamed Salah hauled Liverpool level with his first goal in 11 top-flight games dating back to November last year. However, Andre’s first goal for Wolves inflicted the latest humbling loss in a chastening season for Liverpool. It was the first time the Premier League’s bottom club had beaten the reigning champions since Crystal Palace defeated Chelsea in 2017. Liverpool
RSS