Ligue 1 Superthread 2016/17

Mr.Nice Guy

What a chance for Lille! Sankharé has an open goal and fluffs it. He seemed shocked the ball reached him. Eder did great there. Doubt they'll get a better opportunity than that.

Mr.Nice Guy

Full-Time and PSG beat Lille 1-0. In truth it was more comfortable than the scoreline suggests. Cavani missed some good chances and Di Maria had a goal harshly ruled out.

Lille still could have won it near the end though had Sankhare taken his chance.

I was impressed with Rabiot when he came on as a sub. He's more dynamic than their other options and Emery should start him next game I reckon.

Up to Nice and Monaco now to do the business.

Debil

Lille were really poor in possession, but improved after the break a little. PSG were fairly limited chance wise in the 2nd.

Yer man Sankhare was unlucky with the chance. Went to head it first, and couldn't adjust his body in time to kick/knee it in. Eder was a beast to win the ball. I don't think he got a touch until around 75 mins.

Meunier really looks like he should be a centre half with his height, but he's deceivingly quick when he gets going.

Decent enough game, even if fairly one-sided. The Lille fans behind the goal made a good lot of noise too.

Mr.Nice Guy

Monaco being held 1-1 at Saint-Etienne today means Nice can go 6 points clear at the top tomorrow if they beat Nantes.

Burial.

Another goal for Mario. Lovely finish after a well timed run. Also gets credit for the assist for the first goal. Delighted to see him do well.

Mr.Nice Guy

Burial. wrote: »

Another goal for Mario. Lovely finish after a well timed run. Also gets credit for the assist for the first goal. Delighted to see him do well.

I like how Nice have used him so far. They're not relying on him too heavily and placing lots of pressure on him. He doesn't play every single game. It's working well so far. Seems like they went 4-3-3 today as well and that might be a good strategy against teams lower down the league.

Marseille vs Bordeaux is the evening kick-off on BT Sport 3 tonight (kick-off 7.45). Team news:

Marseille: Pelé; Fanni, Doria, Rolando, Bedimo; Diarra, Lopez, Machach; Thauvin, Gomis, Sarr.

Bordeaux: Prior - Sabaly, Sertic, Pallois, Contento - Ounas, Toulalan, Plasil, Kamano - Rolan, Malcom

Plenty of exciting youngsters on display here. 18 year old Maxime Lopez starts for Marseille and Zinedine Machach is also good and is only 20.

Been very impressed with Malcom of Bordeaux and Adam Ounas too; both of them are just 19.

I'll go for Marseille to win 2-1.

Mr.Nice Guy

Good grief, that Bordeaux away strip is hideous.

Mr.Nice Guy

The ref has gone off with what looks like a pulled hamstring. The fourth official replacing him.

Update: 0-0 at Half-Time. I thought Plasil had a good half for Bordeaux. Marseille have been poor; I expected more. Thauvin looks the most likely to make something happen for them. Bordeaux probably had the best chance but Rolan couldn't finish it. Not enough quality in attack from either team. This moment from Kamano sums the half up:

https://twitter.com/philousports/status/792824809935740929

Mr.Nice Guy

Full-Time and it ends 0-0. Noticeable lack of quality from both sides in the final third it must be said. Marseille suffered a blow with Gomis having to come off in the second half to be replaced by Aaron Leya Iseka, the younger brother of Chelsea's Michy Batshuayi. Unfortunately for the kid he missed a great chance in the second half and I'm sure Gomis would have stuck it away had he been there.

Maxime Lopez was probably the stand-out youngster of the game. Thauvin had a good game for Marseille too. Bordeaux defended well but were rarely tested. Gaetan Laborde who came on as a sub for Bordeaux was awful with his decision-making and wasted decent counter-attack chances.

I've seen Marseille a few times this season now and they have been disappointing. Their fans create a great atmosphere though; they deserve better.

HalloweenJack

How is Diego Rolan doing?

I saw him for Uruguay a while back and was very impressed.

Mr.Nice Guy

HalloweenJack wrote: »

How is Diego Rolan doing?

I saw him for Uruguay a while back and was very impressed.

He started the season well and I recall a game against Nantes where he impressed and he scored the winner in that one. But he hasn't done much of note lately which is a bit like Bordeaux in general. He was pretty poor in that game against Marseille at the weekend. His next game is at home to bottom club Lorient so perhaps he can get on the scoresheet against them.

Mr.Nice Guy

Montpellier vs Marseille is on BT Sport ESPN tonight with kick-off 7.45. Teams:

Montpellier XI: Pionnier - Deplagne, Hilton, Saint Ruf, Roussillon - Sessegnon, Skhiri - Sanson, Boudebouz, Camara - Mounié

Marseille XI: Pelé; Fanni, Rolando, Doria, Bedimo; Diarra, Lopez, Cabella; Thauvin, Njie, Alessandrini

Marseille have struggled to score goals and now Gomis is out injured. Young Aaron Leya Iseka was dropped after he missed the team bus and went to the airport instead (sounds like something Karl Pilkington would do). Msrseille aren't giving many goals away and Pele has more clean sheets than any goalkeeper in the top 5 leagues. However, Sanson and Boudebouz are playing well for Montpellier...

I think I'll go for a 1-1 draw.

Mr.Nice Guy

1-0 Montpellier. Boudebouz scores a rebound.

Update: Clinton Njie nearly scored a sensational goal. Cut inside really well but tried to score with the outside of his boot and made a mess of it. Pity.

Update II: Goal! Boudebouz again. He's on fire at the moment.

Mr.Nice Guy

2-0 to Montpellier at half-time. Marseille back to their old awful form. Diarra was poor. Lopez probably their best player, though he's on a yellow.

Montpellier deserve their lead. Boudebouz is causing them all sorts of problems. Mounie and Sandon doing well too.

Mr.Nice Guy

2-1. Thauvin with a header.

Update: 3-1. Mounie taps in after a great cross from Sanson.

Update II: Deplagne makes an awful challenge. I thought the ref was going to send him off but he gets a yellow. I think a lot of refs would have given the red card there.

Mr.Nice Guy

Full-Time and it ends 3-1 to Montpellier.

Boudebouz the star of the show. Very skilful player and been great to watch whenever I've seen him this season. Sanson and Mounie did well too.

Not a lot of positives for Marseille. Gomis was missed but should be back after the international break.

Bobby Baccala

Mr.Nice Guy wrote: »

Full-Time and it ends 3-1 to Montpellier.

Boudebouz the star of the show. Very skilful player and been great to watch whenever I've seen him this season. Sanson and Mounie did well too.

Not a lot of positives for Marseille. Gomis was missed but should be back after the international break.

Been really impressed with Boudebouz any time I've seen him this season, between BT's ligue 1 coverage and your input to this thread I've been taking a bit more of an interest in French football this season. Keep it up man.

Mr.Nice Guy

Monaco went goal-crazy again today with a 6-0 win over Nancy. I'm surprised as Nancy were playing decent lately. That's 12 goals for Monaco in their last two Ligue 1 home games, and 36 goals overall in all 12 of their Ligue 1 games. Falcao got 2 goals today and seems to be having a good spell.

It would be nice if Monaco could sustain a title challenge. They're only 3 points behind Nice now who are away to Caen tomorrow. PSG are at home to Rennes in the evening match.

Mr.Nice Guy

Disappointing that Nice suffered their first defeat of the season - and to a team struggling near the bottom too in Caen. Only had one shot on target the whole game as well. Balotelli struck the woodwork. Hopefully this was just a blip and not a sign the title challenge is coming unstuck. Seems like they went 4-3-3 which perhaps is too ambitious for games away from home.

It means PSG can go to within 3 points of Nice if they beat Rennes in the evening game, which is on BT Sport 3 (kick-off 7.45). Teams:

PSG XI: Trapp - Aurier, Marquinhos, Silva (c), Maxwell - Rabiot, Verratti, Matuidi - Lucas, Cavani, Di Maria.

Rennes XI: Costil - Danzé, Mendes, Gnagnon, Baal - Pedro Henrique, Fernandes, Bensebaini, Ntep - Y. Gourcuff, Sio

Areola is injured so Trapp gets the number one jersey back. If he has a good game he might convince Emery he's the better choice considering Areola has come under criticism for his Champions League blunder in mid-week. Nice to see Rabiot getting some game time again.

Rennes have been playing some nice stuff of late and Paul-Georges Ntep is one to watch, but I think PSG should be able to take all 3 points here.

I'll go for a 2-0 home win.

Mr.Nice Guy

Silva has a header that's goal-bound but it appears to hit Gelson Fernandes in the face - but the replay shows that Fernandes blocked his face with his hands. That could have been a penalty.

Update: PSG score.

Looked on first sight that Cavani had scored a sensational near post header but it turns out that Rennes keeper Costil keeps it out, only for the rebound to ironically hit Fernandes on the hand and trickle in! And so it will go down as an O.G.

Mr.Nice Guy

This could just as easily go into the humour thread...

https://twitter.com/philousports/status/795360729469751296

Mr.Nice Guy

Cavani just scored a beauty!

Update: And now it looks like he's done in his hamstring. They're not going to risk him and he'll be coming off.

Half-Time and PSG go in with a 2-0 lead. Di Maria has been playing much better than his last few games where he's disappointed. Aurier has caused problems too. Overall though PSG weren't great but Cavani illuminated the game with a world class goal, capitalizing on a mistake. Shame he had to go off injured. Jese has replaced him. Rennes haven't offered much; Ntep has been their best player. They have decent options on the bench in Grosicki, who has been a bit of a super sub this season, and Wesley Said who has also done well. I expect to see one or both at some point.

Mr.Nice Guy

Here's the Cavani goal btw. Knew exactly what he was doing:

https://twitter.com/ParisNoLimit/status/795363801789034498

Mr.Nice Guy

Rabiot makes it 3-0 with a long range effort. I think Costil will be disappointed to be beaten, although it was a quality strike.

Before that Aurier nearly topped Cavani's goal with a ferocious shot that rattled the crossbar.

Only thing now to make the night sweeter for PSG would be a goal for Jese (or Ben Arfa who has just come on).

Update: Aurier hits the crossbar again! This time from a header. Poor guy can't get a goal tonight.

Mr.Nice Guy

Marco Verratti smashes in a fourth. He's been great tonight and kept things ticking along.

It's champagne football from PSG in this second half; Rennes just want the night to be over. Ten minutes to go.

Mr.Nice Guy

Full-Time and it ends 4-0 to PSG. The second half display was one of the most impressive performances I've seen from Emery's team. A lot of players impressed: Verratti was sublime tonight; he controlled the midfield. Rabiot was very good too. Di Maria was back in form. Aurier was a big threat too. Ben Arfa showed some good touches when he came on. Cavani scored a fantastic goal. The only real blemishes for PSG were the hamstring injury to Cavani and Jese just not being able to get a goal - he had chances but just couldn't get on the end of them.

Rennes were outclassed. Ntep did well and Sio did about as well as could be expected for a striker whose team are struggling to get on the ball.

It's probably a good thing for Ligue 1 that we're going into the international break as it might disrupt PSG somewhat; if they carry on this form it will be tough for any team to live with them. You get the feeling if they can string performances like this together consistently then they will pull away.

Overall, an entertaining game of football.

Mr.Nice Guy

Lille vs Lyon is on BT Sport ESPN tonight at 7.45. Lille are having a terrible season and are in the relegation zone; Lyon have been a mixed bag but a win will take them to 4th.

Team news:

Lille: Enyeama; Corchia, Soumaoro, Basa, Béria; Sankharé, Mavuba, Amadou; M.Amalfitano, Eder, De Préville.

Lyon: A.Lopes; Rafael, Yanga Mbiwa, Diakhaby, Morel; Ferri, Gonalons, Tolisso; Cornet, Lacazette, Rybus.

I saw Lille play PSG a few weeks back where they lost 1-0 and they didn't offer much. Lyon have a better threat, especially Tolisso, Cornet and obviously Lacazette, but defensively they've been dodgy this season. They were awful against Guingamp a few weeks ago where Rafael was poor, as was Diakhaby. The defence would be my main concern for Lyon.

I think Lyon's attacking options will get them the 3 points though so I'll predict 2-1 to Lyon.

Mr.Nice Guy

Already 1-0 to Lyon. Boos from the home fans.

Ferri goes around Enyeama and passes to Cornet who has an easy finish. Could be a tough evening for Lille.

Update: Looked like De Preville had equalised but the linesman correctly flagged for offside.

Mr.Nice Guy

1-0 to Lyon at half-time. Lyon have been playing some good stuff at times. Lille have been second best but they've had some half chances via set-pieces. Lyon ought to win this but they'll need that second goal to feel comfortable.

Also Monaco won away to Lorient 3-0 and are now level with Nice at the top on points, who play on Sunday. Falcao got on the scoresheet once again. Thomas Lemar scored a superb free-kick.

greendom

Mr.Nice Guy wrote: »

1-0 to Lyon at half-time. Lyon have been playing some good stuff at times. Lille have been second best but they've had some half chances via set-pieces. Lyon ought to win this but they'll need that second goal to feel comfortable.

Also Monaco won away to Lorient 3-0 and are now level with Nice at the top on points, who play on Sunday. Falcao got on the scoresheet once again. Thomas Lemar scored a superb free-kick.

Monaco are really knocking the goals in this season!. Hope they can keep it up, especially in Europe.

Mr.Nice Guy

Sankhare sent off for Lille. Correct decision. Awful tackle.

Really hard to see Lille getting anything from this game now. Lyon have started the 2nd half well too.

Update: Full-Time and it ends 1-0 to Lyon. The sending off of Sankhare ruined the contest as Lyon seemed content to take their foot off the gas from that point on. Lille did come close to scoring through a long range strike from Amadou that hit the crossbar. That would have been a goal of the season contender had it been a few inches closer. Tolisso, Ferri and Lacazette linked up well for Lyon. Gonalons did okay in the holding role too. Rony Lopes came on in the second half for Lille and had some decent moments. Other than that, nothing much of note from the game.

I'm looking forward to Lyon's next Ligue 1 game: at home to PSG. We'll learn much more about them from that game than the one tonight.

- bo -

PSG-Nantes at 4pm. Please, please just keep the score down and don't completely embarrass yourselves.

- bo -

1-0 at half-time for PSG. I thought the floodgates would open when Di Maria stuck it in. PSG as you'd expect have dominated possession but Trapp in the PSG goal has actually had more work to do than Riou down the other end. Still in this... for the moment.

Mr.Nice Guy

Well losing 2-0 to PSG wouldn't be an embarrassing result. Sounds like PSG struggled when Di Maria went off injured. I see Emery thinks he will be fit to face Arsenal; if not, that's a big blow. Jese finally opened his account as well.

Surprised to see Metz winning away to Toulouse. Didn't see that one coming.

Looking forward to Nice tomorrow away to Saint-Etienne. That could be a very good evening game.

Mr.Nice Guy

So Guingamp got a stoppage time equaliser to draw 1-1 with Bordeaux; Guingamp are tough to beat of late. Marseille also got a welcome win (1-0) over Caen.

Saint-Etienne vs Nice is on BT Sport 3 tonight with kick-off at 7.45. A win for the home side will lift them to sixth while Nice are aiming to go 3 points clear at the top.

Teams:

Saint-Etienne: Ruffier - Theophile, Perrin, Lacroix - Malcuit, Selnaes, Veretout, M'bengue - Saivet - Roux, Soderlund.

Nice: Cardinale - Dalbert, Dante, Sarr, Pereira - Cyprien, Seri, Walter, Eysseric - Belhanda, Plea.

Balotelli isn't with Nice tonight through suspension - so he's attending the Milan derby! Should he not be cheering on his teammates in this crucial game? Oh well. Plea is in good form at least and should do well up top with Belhanda. Seri and Cyprien are having great seasons too, as is Pereira at right-back.

Saint-Etienne don't tend to concede a lot and Ruffier has been excellent in goal, with Perrin playing well in defence lately. This should be a challenging game for Nice.

I will go for this being a 1-1 game, but I'm hoping Nice win and keep the title race interesting.

Update: Half an hour in and it's cagey stuff. Saint-Etienne looking defensive as usual. Nice seem more likely to break the deadlock, although Saint Etienne look decent on the break.

Update II: Half-Time and it's 0-0. Been a disappointing half. Saint-Etienne only scored once in the first half this season apparently and on this showing it's understandable. Seri's had some nice moments for Nice but I've seen him play better.

Mr.Nice Guy

Eysseric with a great strike makes it 1-0 to Nice. Most exciting thing to happen in the game by far. Took an hour but maybe this game will pick up now.

Update: Should have been 2-0. Plea dithered when through on goal and Malcuit did well to get back and prevent a strike.

Update II: Full-Time and it ends 1-0 to the away side. That puts Nice back on top with a lead of 3 points.

Overall, Nice deserved the win. They played better and looked the more threatening. I thought the youngster Sarr did well for Nice defensively, not that Saint-Etienne offered much. Saint-Etienne were badly missing their top scorer Beric and looked toothless at times. They did come close to equalising from a set-piece through Perrin but he shot over. Nice almost doubled their lead late on through Plea, and an audacious lob fromthe halfway line from Belhanda.

It wasn't a great game though. The goal was the best bit of quality all evening. Next week's evening game ought to be much better: Lyon vs PSG.

Mr.Nice Guy

Very exciting game tonight on BT Sport 2 - Lyon vs PSG. Kick-off is 7.45.

Nice dropped two points earlier by drawing with Bastia so a win for PSG would take them to joint-second alongside Monaco, and just a point behind Nice; a win for Lyon will take them to fourth. Team news:

Lyon XI: Lopes - Rafael, Mapou, Diakhaby, Morel - Gonalons, Ferri, Tolisso - Ghezzal, Rybus, Lacazette.

PSG XI: Areola - Aurier, Marquinhos, Silva (c), Maxwell - Verratti, Motta - Lucas, Ben Arfa, Matuidi - Cavani

Not sure about that Lyon selection. Looks suspect defensively. Their midfield should give a good account of themselves and Lacazette can cause problems but I like the PSG line-up a lot: Aurier coming back in will be a big boost and Ben Arfa starts for the first time in a few months. It will be interesting to see how well Cavani does after he missed so many chances against Arsenal.

I'll go for 2-1 to PSG.

Mr.Nice Guy

Penalty to PSG.

And Cavani scores.

Update: 1-0 to PSG at half-time. I expected PSG to have more of the ball but didn't expect they would be so dominant. Lyon struggling to put anything together and Lacazette isn't getting the service he needs. Verratti pulling the strings in midfield. Rafael has been really poor: gave away the penalty with a clumsy foul on Motta and has blown opportunities to cross when in PSG's half.

Mr.Nice Guy

Substitute Valbuena smashes in an equaliser to make it 1-1. Much better from Rafael this time as he almost scores a terrific goal himself but it hits the post. Valbuena converts the rebound.

Update: 2-1 to PSG with Cavani the goalscorer. A wonderful counter-attack from PSG with great work from Aurier, Meunier and then Cavani with the header to finish. That was a great goal. About ten minutes to play.

Mr.Nice Guy

Full-Time and it ends 2-1 to PSG. The second half was much better than the first and a lot more competitive. Lyon will feel hard done by that they didn't get a point given how they performed in the second 45, but PSG were very clinical with how they took the second goal in a great counter-attack move; also when you consider PSG were by far the better team in the first half I'd say they just about merit the win.

Verratti was very good in midfield. I also thought Marquinhos did well in defence. Aurier also had a good game and when Meunier came on as a sub the pair did very well down the right side. Cavani in this game took the chances when they came along. PSG now a point behind Nice and behind second-placed Monaco on goal difference.

There's midweek Ligue 1 action coming up on BT Sport: Monaco are away to Dijon on Tuesday while PSG are home to Angers on Wednesday. Should be some good action in those games.

Mr.Nice Guy

Dijon vs Monaco kicks off at 8 on BT Sport 2 tonight. Monaco are the most attractive side to watch in France right now and scoring lots of goals so it could be a good watch.

Team news:

Dijon XI: Reynet - Bernard, Lang, Loties, Abdelhamid, Rüfli - Gastien, Bernard, Sammaritano, Bela - Rivière.

Monaco XI: Subasic; Sidibé, Glik, Diallo, Raggi; Fabinho, Moutinho, Lemar, B. Silva; Carrillo, Germain.

Loic Diony is doing well this season for Dijon and played well at the weekend but has been benched, which is a pity, as has striker Julio Tavares who scored at the weekend. Looks to me like Dijon are ditching flair and bracing for a backs to the wall effort. Maybe it's for the best. Goalkeeper Baptiste Reynet is having a good season and will need to have a good game tonight you'd imagine.

Falcao and Bakayoko have been left out for Monaco but Moutinho and Carrillo should do fine. Germain was very good against Marseille, and Lemar and Silva are having good seasons down the flanks. Mbappe is on the bench and he's an exciting youngster; it would be nice to see him get some game time at some point.

I'll go for a 3-1 Monaco win.

Mr.Nice Guy

1-0 Monaco. Carrillo pounces on a howler from Reynet who fails to deal with a shot from Sidibe; Carrillo taps in the rebound. I said the keeper needed to have a good game today but that's not promising...

Update: Half-Time and it's 1-0. Monaco haven't been great despite their lead. They seem to be going through the motions. Defender Glik has probably been their best player. Dijon nearly got an equaliser through Rufli but he shot wide. I'd like to see Diony brought on for Dijon as I think he can cause Monaco problems.

HalloweenJack

Have an eye on this for the second half. Dijon look like a decent enough outfit, an equaliser would not be underserved.

Mr.Nice Guy

Sammaritano equalises with just minutes to go. This is going to be a blow for Monaco.

Mr.Nice Guy

Full-Time and it ends 1-1. Now there's a chance for Nice and PSG to capitalize tomorrow when they play Guingamp and Angers respectively.

Dijon played well in the second half and deserved to get something from the game. I thought Diony did very well when he came on and he caused problems for Sidibe. Monaco just weren't at it tonight which surprised me. I thought Fabinho did okay in midfield but Bakayoko was missed. Glik was probably their best player. They barely tested Reynet in the second half which is extraordinary considering how many goals they have notched up this season. That probably indicates how important Bakayoko is in the side. Mendy too.

If Dijon play like this more often they could well stay up.

- bo -

Meanwhile, tonight's results see Nantes deservedly drop into the relegation spots... and facing Lyon tomorrow evening.

Mr.Nice Guy

- bo - wrote: »

Meanwhile, tonight's results see Nantes deservedly drop into the relegation spots... and facing Lyon tomorrow evening.

Riou seemed to have a good game against Lille from the highlights I saw. I think he will need to have another one if Lyon play like they did in the second half against PSG.

Mr.Nice Guy

Ligue 1 double bill action coming up on BT Sport 3 starting from 6, with Saint-Etienne vs Marseille and later PSG vs Angers. I plan on watching Man United vs West Ham later so I'll miss the PSG game but I'll give the early match a look.

Team news:

Saint-Etienne XI: Ruffier, Theophile-Catherine, Perrin, Pogba, Polomat; Veretout, Selnaes, Saivet; Tannane, Soderlund, Monnet-Paquet.

Marseille XI: Pele, Sakai, Fanni, Rolando, Hubocan; Lopez, Anguissa, Vainqueur; Thauvin, Gomis, Cabella.

Hard to call this one. I like both keepers and can see this being a low-scoring game though I hope not. I've been impressed with Saivet of late; I don't recall seeing much of him at Newcastle. Tannane can cause problems too. Marseille have often disappointed when I've seen them this season, which is quite a lot. I'll say 2-1 to the home team.

Nice gesture from Saint-Etienne tonight too:

https://twitter.com/mohammedali_93/status/804010752977801220

Mr.Nice Guy

0-0 at Half-Time. Amazing that Marseille aren't winning this game. Ruffier is playing a blinder and has made several good saves. Gomis really should have buried his opportunity. Saint-Etienne had a few chances themselves but Saivet's shooting was poor.

In other news, Nice are winning 1-0 at Guingamp while Nantes are losing 3-0 at home to Lyon.

Burial.

Amazing that Lyon were 11/10 to win this morning. Absolute steal considering Nantes terrible home form