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Over the weekend, the 23rd round matches took place in the French "Ligue 1" championship, after which, having secured a convincing victory against the "Valenciennes" club, "Lens" returned to the second position.
Earlier this week, Lan's football players eliminated the league champion "Lyon" from the French Cup tournament and on Saturday, in an away match in "Ligue 1," they convincingly beat the newcomer "Valenciennes" team 1-3. Experienced Eric Carriere led "Lens" forward in this match, defeating the host team's goalkeeper in the 28th minute. "Lens" doubled their advantage in the last minute of the first half through Sidi Keita, and although "Valenciennes" managed to reduce the difference in the 53rd minute, Issamas Jemaa sealed the victory in the last moments of the game.
Another setback was experienced by the "Saint-Etienne" club, which failed to maintain their lead for the second round in a row, losing 1-2 to the league's bottom team, "Sedan." Batefimi Gomes led the Saint-Etienne team forward in the 8th minute of the match, but Joseph Desire Job equalized the score in the 47th minute. In the 70th minute, "Saint-Etienne" defender Lamine Diatta scored an own goal, shattering the team's hopes.
"Monaco" also secured a victory on Saturday and climbed to 13th place in the table by defeating their neighbors "Auxerre" 2-1 at home. Serge Gakpe put the Principality club ahead in the 35th minute, and former "Saint-Etienne" striker Frederic Piquionne doubled the lead by successfully converting a penalty kick from 11 meters in the 63rd minute. Kanga Akale scored a consolation goal for the visiting team in the final minute of the match.
Last season's league vice-champion "Bordeaux" suffered an unexpected defeat, losing 2-1 to "Nice," who are at the bottom of the table this season. Nice secured the victory in the first half with two goals scored by Honorato Ederson. Meanwhile, Johan Micoud scored a consolation goal for Bordeaux in the 34th minute, but it was not enough to earn even a point in this match.
Another club fighting for a place in European tournaments, "Lille," lost points on Saturday. The Lille players hosted the league's bottom team, "Nantes," and failed to defeat them - the match ended in a goalless draw.
Results of the 23rd round:
- 0 - 0
- 1 - 2
- 1 - 3
- 2 - 1
- 2 - 1
- 0 - 0
- 2 - 1
- 2 - 1
Top scorers: (Place, player, club, goals)
1. Steve Savidan ("Valenciennes") 9 2-5. Ismael Bangoura ("Le Mans") 8 Aruna Dindane ("Lens") 8 Pedro Pauleta ("P.S.G") 8 Ilan ("Saint-Etienne") 8 6-10. Mathieu Bodmer ("Lille") 7 Juninho ("Lyon") 7 Florent Malouda ("Lyon") 7 Pascal Feindouno ("Saint-Etienne") 7 Pierre-Andre Gignac ("Lorient") 7
League table:
