Ligue 1 Superthread 2019/20

Mr.Nice Guy · 24-11-2019 12:28am

Saturday results:

Lyon 2-1 Nice
Amiens 0-4 Strasbourg
Angers 1-0 Nimes
Brest 1-1 Nantes
Dijon 2-1 Rennes
Metz 1-1 Reims

Lyon up to 7th with their win while Nice slip down to 15th. Vieira starting to come under pressure now as Nice with just 1 win in 6. Dembele's goal puts him top of the scoring charts with 10 goals.

Strasbourg continuing to climb the table as they go 12th with their strong win. Amiens after a good start now at a more expected position of 16th. Angers back in 2nd with their win while Nimes go bottom. Decent points respectively for promoted sides Brest and Metz.

Dijon out of the bottom three with their impressive win. Poor result from Rennes, with coach Julien Stephan saying he was ashamed of his players after the game. I like Stephan but he's starting to look in danger of the sack at this point.

Mr.Nice Guy · 24-11-2019 11:37pm

Sunday's results:

Bordeaux 2-1 Monaco
Saint-Etienne 0-0 Montpellier
Toulouse 0-2 Marseille

Marseille back to 2nd with their win. Hats off to AVB for his start at the club, especially without arguably his best player Thauvin.

More frustration for Monaco who had the lead via Slimani's opener but he later got himself sent off as Bordeaux went on to win and move 4th. Monaco currently sit 14th which is very poor given the players they possess.

Not surprised St Etienne and Montpellier was a tight game. They're 5th and 6th respectively.

Monaco vs PSG the big game next Sunday, though hard to see past a handy PSG win on current form.

Mr.Nice Guy · 30-11-2019 10:33pm

Weekend results so far:

Marseille 2-1 Brest
Strasbourg 1-2 Lyon
Lille 1-0 Dijon
Montpellier 4-2 Amiens
Nice 3-1 Angers
Nimes 1-1 Metz
Reims 1-1 Bordeaux

Marseille cut PSG's lead at the top to 5 points ahead of Paris' game at Monaco tomorrow night. There's also 4 points separating AVB's side from 3rd-place Angers after Vieira's Nice recorded a good win over them. Montpellier are a point off Angers in 4th with their strong win. I like what Der Zakarian has done with them and I think they've a decent shot at European football this season. They're usually defensively sound and Laborde, Delort, Mollet and Savanier can be a handful for any team.

Looked like England's Josh Maja was going to be the match-winner for Bordeaux but a 93rd minute equaliser from Boulaye Dia leaves Bordeaux fifth. Lyon now just a place behind them after a good win over in-form Strasbourg. Cornet and Reine-Adelaide with the goals and they seem to be enjoying life under Garcia.

Nimes temporarily off the bottom thanks to their draw with fellow strugglers Metz; Habib Diallo with another goal this season and he's gone joint second in the scoring charts alongside Ben Yedder with 9 goals. Dembele the leader with 10. Osimhen up to 8 goals after his penalty today to give Lille the win. Lille still looking far from convincing this season yet they're 7th in the table and only 2 points off third.

Tomorrow's games see bottom side Toulouse travel to Nantes, Rennes hosting Puel's St Etienne who can go third with a win, and Monaco hosting leaders PSG. Expecting Mbappe to be amongst the goals for Paris if he plays as he has an excellent record against his old side.

Mr.Nice Guy · 01-12-2019 8:55pm

Sunday's results:

Nantes 2-1 Toulouse
Rennes 2-1 Saint-Etienne
Monaco P-P PSG (Bad weather)

Toulouse bottom of the table with this result. Kouadio Kone gave his team a mountain to climb by getting a second yellow after just 23 minutes. Big pressure on Kombouare's position. Nantes meanwhile have gone 6th.

Impressive win for Rennes thanks to a 93rd minute winner from Damien Da Silva. Julien Stephan needed a response after the poor showing against Celtic. Suspect Eduardo Camavinga playing had a part in it too. Rennes go 11th, a point behind St Etienne in 9th.

Monaco vs Paris called off due to torrential rain.

There will be midweek games with Angers vs Marseille and Lyon vs Lille on Tuesday looking like the pick of them.

- bo - · 02-12-2019 10:50am

Putting a bit of a stop to the rot... before facing PSG away midweek :pac:

Ah well, I'd have snapped your hand off to be 6th at this point

dr.kenneth noisewater · 03-12-2019 9:01pm

Good win for Marseille away to 4th placed Angers, AVB seems to be doing a good job there.
Josh Maja with a hat trick for Bordeaux, been keeping an eye out for him after the Sunderland documentary. Seemed to take awhile for him to settle but thats 4 in 2 games now

Mr.Nice Guy · 03-12-2019 9:03pm

Watched the Angers/Marseille game which has just finished. Not much to it with Sanson and a Payet penalty giving AVB's side the win. Thought Sanson was the best player. Marseille have now closed the gap at the top to 2 points, though Paris have 2 games in hand.

Maja seems to be finding his feet in Ligue 1.

Promoted side Brest have battered Strasbourg 5-0 with Cristian Battocchio getting a hat-trick. Didn't see that coming.

Lyon vs Lille coming up on BT Sport 1. Teams:

Lyon XI: Lopes; Rafael, Denayer, Marcelo, Kone; Mendes, Tousart; Cornet, Reine-Adelaide, Terrier; Depay.

Lille XI: Maignan; Zeki-Celik, Gabriel, Fonte, Bradaric; Soumare, Sanches; Ikone, Andre, Bamba; Osimhen.

Rudi Garcia has made some big calls for Lyon. Depay returning from injury no surprise but he's left top scorer Dembele on the bench. Aouar and Joachim Andersen also subs.

Plenty of exciting talents on show and particularly interested in how Osimhen gets on. 4th spot up for grabs if either team wins. Game is on BT Sport 1.

Half-Time: 0-0 at the break. Lopes made a very good stop from an Osimhen header. Other than that the game hasn't got going yet. A lot of niggling fouls. Game could do with a few creative players like Aouar and Yazici. Lyon lacking up top as well so hopefully Dembele gets a run out shortly.

Mr.Nice Guy · 03-12-2019 10:36pm

1-0 Lille. Lovely touch from Osimhen to Ikone who finishes. Dembele on for Lyon in response. Just over twenty minutes to go.

Mr.Nice Guy · 03-12-2019 11:05pm

It ends 1-0 to Lille as Galtier's side go 4th. Lyon stay 8th and the final whistle was greeted by loud jeers. Surprised how bad Lyon were. Reine-Adelaide showed good skill at times but they rarely laid a glove on Lille. Thought Gabriel did well in defence for them and Zeki Celik at RB. Osimhen worked hard up top on his own. Renato Sanches starting to show glimpses of quality too. First win away for Lille since March which will give them some confidence ahead of the visit to Stamford Bridge next week.

Mr.Nice Guy · 04-12-2019 6:40pm

Toulouse vs Monaco coming up at 6pm on BT Sport. Home side currently bottom while Monaco are sitting 14th. Augustin and Ben Yedder leading the line for Jardim's side.

1-0: Early lead for Monaco as Ben Yedder scores from the spot against his former side after Augustin fouled.

1-1: Toulouse level things via a penalty of their own after Gradel fouled. Sanogo converts it. Think they deserve that.

Mr.Nice Guy · 05-12-2019 12:55am

Wednesday results:

Amiens P-P Reims (Bad weather)
Dijon 2-2 Montpellier
Metz 0-1 Rennes
Saint-Etienne 4-1 Nice
Toulouse 1-2 Monaco
PSG 2-0 Nantes

Toulouse stay bottom after Gelson Martins came off the bench to give Monaco the win.

Impressive result for Puel's St Etienne which might dampen the Vieira to Arsenal speculation. Don't think he's ready for a job of that level yet. Bouanga with a brace in the game and he's flying atm.

PSG extend their lead at the top to 5 points, plus have a game in hand. Goals via Mbappe and a Neymar pen.

Good point for lowly Dijon against a tough Montpellier side. Pleased for Julien Stephan's Rennes to get another win under their belt. His job was under pressure a few weeks back but now they're up to 7th, and 2 points off 3rd.

Lille vs Brest and Nimes vs Lyon are the next games on Friday. Particularly interested in the former as Brest will be in good spirits after thrashing Strasbourg 5-0.

Mr.Nice Guy · 06-12-2019 11:19pm

Victor Osimhen with another goal tonight as Lille beat Brest 1-0. He's on 9 goals now, 1 behind Dembele and Ben Yedder who are joint-top of the scoring charts. Very curious to see if any clubs show an interest in him in January. Lille now up to third for the time being.

Lyon have moved 5th after winning away at bottom side Nimes 4-0. Depay with 2 goals and an assist. Nimes look an absolute mess and had two players sent off in the first half.

Mr.Nice Guy · 07-12-2019 11:28pm

Lots of goals today. Saturday results:

Montpellier 1-3 PSG
Monaco 3-0 Amiens
Nice 4-1 Metz
Rennes 2-1 Angers
Strasbourg 4-2 Toulouse

PSG go back top by 8 points, though they were trailing 1-0 for most of the game. Pedro Mendes got a second yellow for the home side on 72 minutes and it seems they collapsed after that. Neymar, Mbappe and Icardi with the goals.

Mbappe seems to have had a sulk about getting taken off, even though it was in the 90th minute:

https://twitter.com/beinsports_FR/status/1203384247618297856

He seems to be getting a big head, unfortunately. Hope he grows out of it.

Good win for Monaco that takes them into the top ten; Amiens sink to just above the relegation zone. Ben Yedder with the opener and he now leads the scoring charts with 11 goals. Credit to Vieira for bouncing back from the 4-1 loss to St Etienne by inflicting the same scoreline on Metz. Cyprien with a brace in the game. Nice go 12th, with Metz now in the drop zone.

Julien Stephan, under pressure a few weeks back, now has Rennes up to 4th. Niang with both goals. Pleased for him as I think he's a good coach. Angers were flying high not long ago but they're in 10th currently which feels around their level. Much-needed win for Thierry Laurey's Strasbourg that lifts them out of the bottom three. Toulouse meanwhile replace Nimes at the bottom.

2nd place Marseille vs 5th place Bordeaux looks the pick of tomorrow's games.

Mr.Nice Guy · 08-12-2019 8:44pm

Reims have beaten St Etienne 3-1. Didn't expect that result. Disappointing for Claude Puel's side, though Reims are a solid team. Nantes are 6th after beating Dijon 1-0.

Marseille vs Bordeaux coming up at 8pm which should be a tricky one for AVB as Bordeaux are coming off a 6-0 drubbing of Nimes. Englishman Josh Maja who got a hat-trick in that game starts up front. Former Arsenal target Yacine Adli, who got 2 assists last match, also featuring.

Mr.Nice Guy · 08-12-2019 9:36pm

What a fantastic strike from Adli. :eek:

Bordeaux take the lead just after the half-hour mark with a long range belter.

https://twitter.com/MoeSquare/status/1203775938204327936

Half-Time: Bordeaux lead by a goal. OM unfortunate to be behind as they've done alright. Payet looks up for it.

1-1: Good start to the second half as Amavi heads in from a great Payet corner. Poor defending from Bordeaux.

2-1! Marseille turn it around through a great Sanson strike after Bordeaux play themselves into trouble. Otavio gave it away. Marseille all over them atm. Thirty minutes or so remaining.

3-1. Sub Radonjic wraps up the result after good work from Rongier.

Full-Time: Marseille win 3-1 to go within 5 points of Paris, who have a game in hand. Deserved win with Payet excellent. That game was reminiscent of his 17/18 form. Rongier and Sanson also good. Bordeaux disappointing overall.

Fair play to AVB. He has Marseille playing with great intensity and has brought the best out of Payet. I think they're punching above their weight when you look at their squad. Missing arguably their best player in Thauvin too. Would be a fantastic accomplishment if he can get them into the Champions League.

- bo - · 09-12-2019 10:49am

Jesus we spent the entire game camped in the Dijon half, it would've been criminal if we'd got anything less than 3 points. And then with 2 mins left, they nearly snatch a point with their only shot on target only for a super spot from Lafont.

2 league games away to Nimes and home to Angers (who are in freefall) before the break and a serious chance of going into the break in the top 4/5.

Before the inevitable slide from January to May :pac:

Mr.Nice Guy · 14-12-2019 11:27pm

Weekend results:

Lille 2-1 Montpellier
Metz 1-1 Marseille
Amiens 1-1 Dijon
Angers 0-0 Monaco
Brest 0-0 Nice
Nimes 0-1 Nantes
Toulouse 0-1 Reims

Not a very high-scoring round of fixtures thus far. Lille with the only home win which takes them up to third place. Ikone with a goal and an assist. Renato Sanches with the other goal and he's looking very good of late.

Disappointing result for Marseille against relegation candidates Metz. Could have been worse as Mandanda had to save a pen from Diallo. Radonjic off the bench with an equaliser and he's another that's finally starting to show his quality.

The stalemates at Angers and Brest don't help those four mid-table sides much. Vieira's Nice fortunate to avoid defeat as Brest's Charbonnier hit the bar with a penalty. The point between Amiens and Dijon not ideal either for those relegation strugglers. Nantes and Reims up to 4th and 5th respectively with their wins as Nimes and Toulouse stay in the bottom two.

Expecting better action tomorrow. Bordeaux vs Strasbourg has potential for goals, Lyon host an in-form Rennes, while PSG visit Claude Puel's St Etienne.

Mr.Nice Guy · 15-12-2019 11:21pm

Awful news today for Lyon as both Memphis Depay and Jeff-Reine Adelaide suffered cruciate ligament injuries.

https://twitter.com/OL/status/1206315923365408768

They'll be out for a minimum of 6 months. Particularly bad concerning Depay who has been their captain and talisman this season. Bad for the Netherlands too if he is going to miss the Euros. Even if he makes it, you wonder how fit he'd be. Gutted for him.

To make matters worse Lyon lost the match 1-0 to Rennes. Julien Stephan has really turned it around the last few weeks and Rennes are up to 4th. Seventeen-year-old Camavinga with a nice solo goal in the last minute of normal time. He looks like a future star. Good 1-0 win for Strasbourg away at Bordeaux. After a positive run, Bordeaux have dipped of late.

PSG won convincingly at St Etienne 4-0, the hosts having Aholou sent off after 25 minutes. PSG's attack did the business once more with Mbappe getting 2 goals, Icardi 1, and Neymar 2 assists. Paredes with the other goal. Neymar missed a pen as well, which hit the post.

It was a strange round of fixtures with Lille the only team to pick up a home win.

Mr.Nice Guy · 21-12-2019 8:37pm

All teams in action this evening at 7:45pm in the final games of 2019 before the winter break.

PSG vs Amiens is on BT Sport 3 as Di Maria, Neymar, Icardi and Mbappe start. Expecting Paris to see the year out with a good few goals.

Mr.Nice Guy · 21-12-2019 8:59pm

That didn't take long. 1-0 PSG. Neymar's ball to Mbappe who races through and dinks it over the keeper.

Mbappe has brought back the bleached blonde hair.

1-0 to PSG at half-time. Credit to Amiens who haven't capitulated but it seems only a matter of time before PSG add more.

Elsewhere, Monaco have come back from 1-0 down to lead Lille 2-1.

Neymar has made it 2-0. In worrying news Thiago Silva has gone off injured. Landed awkwardly on his ankle.

Nice goal by Paris for 3-0. Mbappe gets a second after nice passes from Neymar and Di Maria. Monaco are hammering Lille 4-1. Jardim needed this result badly.

Amiens pull one back against PSG. They're worthy of a goal. Navas had to do very well to tip an effort on to the post earlier.

Subasic sent off for Monaco despite the fact he's not even on the pitch. Wonder how he managed that.

Icardi makes it 4-1 from a nice Bernat cross.

Funny moment as a pitch invader enters the field and runs towards Mbappe as stewards give chase. Turns out it's a small child in a Christmas hat. Mbappe gives him a hug and signs a book for him as he's escorted away!

Mr.Nice Guy · 21-12-2019 10:57pm

Lots of goals in the final round of games for 2019:

Dijon 2-2 Metz
Marseille 3-1 Nimes
Monaco 5-1 Lille
Montpellier 4-0 Brest
Nantes 1-2 Angers
Nice 3-0 Toulouse
PSG 4-1 Amiens
Reims 1-1 Lyon
Rennes 1-0 Bordeaux
Strasbourg 2-1 Saint-Etienne

PSG see out the year with a lead of 7 points and a game in hand. Mbappe very good tonight and a memorable moment with the young fan that came on to the pitch:

https://twitter.com/GFFN/status/1208502101455839232

Marseille and Rennes go 2nd and 3rd respectively with their wins and not many would have imagined those two occupying the Champions League places. AVB and Julien Stephan punching way above their weight atm.

Horrible night for Lille and a great result for Jardim. There were rumours his position may be under threat had he lost the game. Monaco up to 7th now with Lille 4th.

Poor results for Lyon and Saint-Etienne and the two rivals go into the new year in the bottom half which is mad.

Nimes and Toulouse looking in a bad state with both teams at the bottom, 5 points adrift.

Mr.Nice Guy · 28-12-2019 9:49pm

Monaco have sacked Leonardo Jardim, bringing to an end his second spell at the club. He'll be replaced by Robert Moreno, who lost his job as Spain coach in controversial circumstances to the returning Luis Enrique.

https://twitter.com/AS_Monaco_EN/status/1211025482956849153

Never a dull moment at that club. There were lots of rumours Jardim's job was on the line prior to the Lille game, and the fact they won 5-1 seemed to have bought him more time, but turns out not to be the case.

I think they have been underwhelming for a long time, although the other side of the argument is that they are 7th in the table. Wonder where Jardim will pop up next.

Mr.Nice Guy · 10-01-2020 11:26pm

Marseille have extended their lead in 2nd over 3rd-placed Rennes after beating them on their own patch 1-0. Strootman with the goal after Mendy saved Payet's free-kick. I had half an eye on the match and Marseille didn't look like they'd done enough to warrant the win, so to nick it near the end was a big result.

It means Marseille are on 41 points, 4 behind PSG who have two games in hand. Rennes stay third for the time being on 33 points, though with a game in hand. Looking good for AVB and his side's hopes of getting into the Champions League. He's doing a grand job.

Mr.Nice Guy · 11-01-2020 11:31pm

Saturday results:

Bordeaux 1-2 Lyon
Metz 1-0 Strasbourg
Nimes 2-0 Reims
Angers 1-1 Nice
Amiens 1-2 Montpellier
Toulouse 2-5 Brest

Some significant games in the battle to avoid the drop. Bottom club Toulouse's season summed up in that game: leading 2-1 going into the final twenty minutes and lose it 5-2. Good result for Brest.

Nimes stay 19th but have clawed back ground with a good win over Reims. Wasn't expecting that outcome. Metz up to 16th with their win. Amiens stay 18th after blowing a 1-0 half-time lead; Laborde and Delort with the goals. Montpellier go fifth off that result.

A point each for Angers and Nice doesn't do much for either side. Important win for Rudi Garcia's Lyon coming from a goal down; Dembele and Cornet with a goal and assist each. Wonder will Dembele be there after the January window closes...

PSG vs Monaco tomorrow evening should be interesting as Robert Moreno has his first Ligue 1 game in charge. Think it will be very difficult even with the 'new manager bounce' to get anything the way PSG's attack are performing, but we'll see.

Captain Havoc · 12-01-2020 4:56am

Does anyone know when the fixtures for the end of Feb will be finalised? I'm going to a game with my wife but I need to see if the game will be moved to Friday or Sunday.

Mr.Nice Guy · 12-01-2020 11:18pm

Sunday results:

Saint-Etienne 0-2 Nantes
Dijon 1-0 Lille
PSG 3-3 Monaco

Turns out the new manager bounce was very much in effect for Robert Moreno as he gets a great first point in Ligue 1. Neymar with a brace and a Ballo-Toure own goal for the hosts, while Martins, Ben Yedder and Slimani scored for Monaco. PSG with a great chance to win it late on as Neymar floated in a nice ball for Mbappe, but he finished poorly. Only caught around 15 minutes but seemed like Monaco were well worthy of something from the game.

Means PSG's lead at the top over Marseille is 5 points, with a game in hand on Wednesday against...Monaco. Weird that they play each other twice in quick succession. If it's anything like tonight it should be fun.

Surprised Lille were beaten by lowly Dijon who move up to 16th with the win. Nantes have now overtaken Lille in 4th place with an impressive result at St Etienne. After a bright start for Claude Puel it's gone seriously off the boil. 4 defeats in a row leave them sitting 15th. New signings badly needed there. Boudebouz doesn't seem to have much to offer these days and Khazri has been a shadow of his former self.

- bo - · 13-01-2020 9:06am

Nantes were superb yesterday against a poor ASSE and an absolutely awful referee. Eerie atmosphere around with no crowd at it, and hearing everything from the sidelines.

Captain Havoc wrote: »

Does anyone know when the fixtures for the end of Feb will be finalised? I'm going to a game with my wife but I need to see if the game will be moved to Friday or Sunday.

From experience, I've seen dates/times not officially announced until 2 weeks before the game. It's a pain in the arse sometimes. You can probably expect official confirmation about 3-5 weeks or so before it. Which game is it?!

LuckyGent88 · 13-01-2020 11:23am

Went to the PSG Monaco match last night after the Munster match.

Cracking stadium and atmosphere it must be said and the football didn’t disappoint either.

Game could have finished 6 apiece. Not a hope PSG can win the champions league defending they way they do. They were exposed so easily over and over again. Martins was excellent for Monaco and the same with Ben Yedder.

Captain Havoc · 13-01-2020 2:22pm

- bo - wrote: »

Nantes were superb yesterday against a poor ASSE and an absolutely awful referee. Eerie atmosphere around with no crowd at it, and hearing everything from the sidelines.

From experience, I've seen dates/times not officially announced until 2 weeks before the game. It's a pain in the arse sometimes. You can probably expect official confirmation about 3-5 weeks or so before it. Which game is it?!

Bordeaux, I'm just thinking of my wife, if it's on Saturday night she'll fly out Saturday. I'm still in school Saturday morning, so I'd have to get the train to Paris and back to Vernon if it was on Friday night. Sunday wouldn't matter as they're afternoon games and the flight is around 9 or 10 pm.

Mr.Nice Guy · 15-01-2020 12:28am

I realised we're past the halfway stage of the campaign so with that in mind here's my effort for Ligue 1 team of the half-season:

Goalkeeper: Tricky choice as there have been a couple of impressive keepers but going for Brest's Gautier Larsonneur. A very good young shot-stopper that has helped his team to crucial points, most notably when they won 1-0 away at Angers despite being battered. Think Marseille's Steve Mandanda deserves a mention too. I thought he looked past it last season but he's been excellent thus far. Keylor Navas has proved a good bit of business for PSG as well. Alexandre Oukidja of Metz has been solid of late after some shaky early displays.

Right-back: Decided to go for Hamari Traore of Rennes who has been a consistent performer; thought he stood out in the games with Paris and Lille and think he'd be a decent signing in the January window for a lot of teams.

Centre-backs: I've gone for Thiago Silva in one of the spots as for me he's been the best defender in Ligue 1 this season. His performance against Lille and Marseille were excellent. A lot of potential partners to choose from but going with Axel Disasi of Reims. At the time of writing, Reims have the meanest defence in the league and Disasi has been a big part of that, forming a great partnership with Yunis Abdelhamid, who could also have been picked. Disasi is the younger of the two at 21 and must be attracting interest from bigger clubs at this point. Marseille's Duje Caleta-Car worth a mention too as he's come on a lot under AVB having not looked impressive at all under Garcia.

Left-back: Wouldn't have imagined I'd be doing this last season but have to go with PSG's Juan Bernat who has improved massively this season. I criticised him a lot last campaign but credit to the guy he's worked on his defending, and he adds a lot to PSG's attack. Wouldn't regard this position as a problem at this moment in time but let's see how he does for the rest of 2020.

Central midfield: Going to go with the 17-year-old prodigy Eduardo Camavinga of Rennes who has been hugely important for Stephan's side since helping them beat PSG on the opening day. Scored a wonderful solo winner away at Lyon a few weeks ago and with these performances he'll be off to a big club soon enough. Alongside him I'm going with Marco Verratti who has pulled the strings for PSG very well as usual, including a great game against Marseille. He'll be very important to them in the Champions League. Morgan Sanson deserves a comment as he's been very good for Marseille. Aleksandr Golovin has finally showed what he's capable of at Monaco. Big fan of Florent Mollet at Montpellier too. He's like a low budget De Bruyne, which is meant to be a compliment.

Right-midfield: Has to be Angel Di Maria here who was superb for Paris in the first half of the season. Scored some lovely goals and provided loads of chances. Probably their best player thus far. Honourable mentions to Yoann Court at Brest and Renato Sanches at Lille. I hope the latter can continue his form and finally show what he can do.

Left-midfield: Don't normally like to go for players with limited appearances but can't ignore this man's contributions. Neymar scored an acrobatic injury time winner against Strasbourg on his return to a hostile Parc des Princes, then followed it up with a late winner away at Lyon, then got the winner at Bordeaux, all while the PSG ultras were booing the hell out of him. He's won over most Paris fans since with his play and is in fine form atm. The recent game with Monaco showed that the idea he has become a sidekick to Mbappe is nonsense. On his day he is as good as anyone. Question is can he be fit for the big Champions League clashes this time.

Strikers: This is the most difficult area of all as Ligue 1 has some terrific strikers currently, however the two choices seem obvious. I couldn't leave out the top scorer Wissam Ben Yedder who has been Monaco's big positive this season. And you can't leave out Kylian Mbappe who has continued to be lethal for PSG. It is painful though to have to omit Victor Osimhen of Lille, and Moussa Dembele of Lyon who have been terrific. I can see them heading to bigger clubs in the not too distant future. Memphis Depay was very hard done by also with his season-ending injury as he was proving a real leader prior to that with his performances. Islam Slimani was terrific for Monaco too. Didn't think much of him at Leicester but I see it now. Must say as well I love the strike partnership at Montpellier between Andy Delort and Gaetan Laborde which imo is one of the best in the top 5 leagues.

So my team is:

G. Larsonneur (Brest)

--H. Traore (Rennes)---A. Disasi (Reims)---T. Silva (PSG)----J. Bernat (PSG)

--A. Di Maria (PSG)---E. Camavinga (Rennes)---M. Verratti (PSG)---Neymar (PSG)

K. Mbappe (PSG)---W. Ben Yedder (Monaco)

Manager of the half-season: It has to be Andre Villas-Boas. The fact I don't think my team warrants a representative from the 2nd-placed team shows what a great job he has done with that squad. He's managed to revive Payet's form from 2 seasons ago, improve Marseille at the back after their horror show last campaign, pick up wins without any real stellar striker, and to do it all without arguably his best player in Thauvin. If he can get Marseille into the Champions League with this squad I'd say it's one of his best accomplishments.

Star of the season so far: I would say up to now it's been Di Maria. He's been the standout in the standout team. Mbappe and Neymar will likely overtake him in this respect by the end of the season. If Camavinga can keep up his quality he won't be too far behind either.

Disappointment of the season: Has to be Lyon. The Sylvinho experiment failed dramatically, and Rudi Garcia has had a mixed set of results since. To make matters worse, they lost Depay and Reine-Adelaide to season-ending injuries. It's been a mess so far, but they are only 7th and they could drag themselves back into the Champions League places if they can put a run together.

Mr.Nice Guy · 19-01-2020 3:11pm

https://twitter.com/BnsComps/status/1218673365143171073

His physique is mad for a 16 year old. He looks about 23 with his frame.

- bo - · 20-01-2020 9:38am

It was a cracking game of football on Saturday night, Nantes-Lyon. They could have been about 6-2 up at half-time. Missed a penalty and then went 4-1 about a minute after. It was still an open game and we pegged it back to 4-3 and had the momentum. Then a big melee lasted about 3 minutes in injury time which was clever on Lyon's part because it totally killed that momentum. Then in the dying seconds Toure flashes one inches past the post and from the resulting corner the keepr Lafont almost heads in an equaliser. Best game I've watched in ages and just a shame I was following the losing side.

Mr.Nice Guy · 21-01-2020 11:31pm

Lyon are through to the Coupe de la Ligue final after beating Lille 4-3 on pens. Tatarusanu saved Jonathan Bamba's effort and Renato Sanches put his wide. Match was 2-2 before the shootout. A Dembele pen and Aouar strike were Lyon's goals; Sanches and an injury time pen from Remy got the goals for Lille.

PSG travel to Reims tomorrow for a place in the final. Reims have beaten them 2-0 this season, in Paris no less, but it would be a tall order to pip them to a final spot. Would be a great story though.

Mr.Nice Guy · 25-01-2020 10:27pm

Weekend results thus far:

Nice 1-1 Rennes
Marseille 0-0 Angers
Brest 2-1 Amiens
Monaco 1-3 Strasbourg
Montpellier 2-1 Dijon
Reims 0-1 Metz
Saint-Etienne 2-1 Nimes

Just when you think Monaco might be turning a corner, they crash back to Earth with a thud. That's two home defeats in a row for new coach Robert Moreno. He's discovering what a banter outfit he's joined. Strasbourg jump from bottom half to 7th which illustrates how congested everything is.

Disappointing result for Marseille who were without Payet ahead of rumours about a January move for him. PSG can go 10 points clear if they win away at Lille tomorrow.

Puel's St Etienne with a badly needed win that eases their relegation concerns. Khazri with both goals as Nimes look in big trouble in 19th. Brest likewise with a big win as Amiens stay 18th. Dijon only one spot above the bottom three now, as Montpellier move fourth; Mollet with a goal and assist for them. Metz with an impressive win away at Reims that boosts their survival hopes. Habib Diallo with his 11th of the season as he moves level with Dembele in the charts. Surprised a club hasn't put a bid in for him as he's young and unlikely to cost too much. Would be worth a punt I'd have thought.

Some interesting games tomorrow with Lyon home to bottom side Toulouse, Nantes looking to reclaim 4th at home to Bordeaux, and PSG away to Lille who beat them 5-1 in this fixture last season.

Mr.Nice Guy · 26-01-2020 11:32pm

I caught the evening game as PSG beat Lille 2-0 to move 10 points clear. Neymar with both of the goals. He played well and his first was a beaut:

https://twitter.com/ElevenSports_PT/status/1221536430712856581

He scored his second from the spot and paid tribute to Kobe Bryant afterwards, but Lille were furious with the decision and I think they had a right to be. Reinildo did handle the ball but beforehand - forgive the pun - it looked like Ikone was fouled on the edge of the box. Galtier and the players wanted VAR to go back and look at that but they refused. PSG did merit the win, ultimately. Mbappe had chances but didn't take them. Verratti and Gueye did well in midfield. Ikone was probably Lille's brightest player. I like Osimhen but he didn't do much tonight and his shots were wayward.

In the other games, Lyon beat bottom side Toulouse 3-0; Toko Ekambi came off the bench to score on his debut, and Dembele and Cornet with the other goals. Bordeaux got a good result at Nantes thanks to Briand's late winner.

Big game next week with implications for the bottom as 18th-place Amiens take on bottom club Toulouse. If Toulouse suffer defeat they'll be 9 points off safety. Significant games for the European spots too as Nice face Lyon, Rennes meet Nantes, and Strasbourg host Lille.

Mr.Nice Guy · 28-01-2020 11:13pm

Some interesting results in the Coupe de France tonight.

Rennes beat Angers 5-4 after Extra Time. Game had ended 3-3 after normal time. Montpellier were knocked out on pens to 4th tier side ASM Belfort.

Also Monaco suffered another home loss as Claude Puel's Saint-Etienne won 1-0. After a good start things are going awry for Robert Moreno. Familiar theme with them of one step forward, two steps back.

Mr.Nice Guy · 31-01-2020 11:00pm

Fantastic ending to the Breton Derby between Rennes and Nantes with the home side winning 3-2. Managed to catch the tail end of the game and it must be one of the games of the season. Also one of the best uses of VAR in terms of excitement that I've seen.

Nantes had been leading 2-1 going into the 95th minute, only for Bourigeaud to equalise. Looked like it was heading for a point apiece before Raphinha converted a rebound after Lafont saved Niang's shot in the 97th minute. Linesman immediately flagged for offside - and the initial replay seemed to show Raphinha just off - but after a little delay the goal was given; turned out he was just onside via his opponent's heel. Stadium went bananas when the goal was awarded. Very exciting ending and worth looking out for the highlights.

That result sees Rennes go temporarily 7 points clear in 3rd. Remarkable season they're having under Julien Stephan. I see they signed Nzonzi on loan until the end of the campaign which looks a useful move for both parties.

Mr.Nice Guy · 01-02-2020 10:42pm

Saturday results:

PSG 5-0 Montpellier
Amiens 0-0 Toulouse
Angers 1-4 Reims
Dijon 3-0 Brest
Nimes 3-1 Monaco
Strasbourg 1-2 Lille

Another rotten result for Monaco as they lose to 19th place Nimes. Robert Moreno is approaching Thierry Henry levels of bad. Bakayoko and Martins both sent off around the half-hour mark.

Good win for Dijon to boost their survival hopes. Toulouse end their losing streak but still well adrift at the bottom.

Comfortable win for Paris as Montpellier finished with 9 men. Lille up to 4th for the time being after coming from behind to win. Lyon can go above them if they beat Nice tomorrow. The battle for the final Champions League spot looks interesting. I'd like Rennes to get it but I suspect Lyon and Lille will claw the gap back and it will be one of them.

Mr.Nice Guy · 02-02-2020 11:37pm

Turned out to be a very good weekend for Rennes' CL hopes as Marseille were held to a goalless draw at Bordeaux, while Lyon lost 2-1 to Patrick Vieira's Nice. Dolberg with both goals; Toko Ekambi getting another for Lyon since his move.

Great result for Metz to help their survival hopes as they move to 16th after beating St Etienne 3-1. Habib Diallo with a goal and assist, and he's now only behind Ben Yedder, Mbappe and Neymar in the scoring charts. I'm really surprised no club took a punt on him. Can't imagine he'd be too expensive. St Etienne meanwhile now only 2 points ahead of Metz in the league. I like Claude Puel but he's doing much worse than I imagined. Needs to get a run of wins.

HalloweenJack · 03-02-2020 8:32pm

Neymar injured in February again? It must be his sister's birthday soon.

https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/51362824

Mr.Nice Guy · 04-02-2020 11:17pm

Tuchel seems to be struggling to keep control. Neymar having a lavish birthday against his wishes, while Mbappe threw another strop after being subbed at the weekend which even an annoyed Di Maria spoke out against. They can get away with this in Ligue 1 but it could bite them badly in the Champions League.

Saw a bit of their game tonight at Nantes and despite winning 2-1 they were far from convincing. Navas had to save them on several occasions and Nantes really ought to have grabbed a point. Was impressed with Moses Simon up front. He looks a player.

Lille got a big result beating Rennes 1-0, which closes the gap on the last CL place to 3 points; Loic Remy with the goal. Monaco meanwhile got a badly needed win over Angers to take them inside the top ten. Stevan Jovetic with the only goal of that game.

Mr.Nice Guy · 05-02-2020 11:49pm

Watched the BT Sport double bill tonight, but two poor games really. Lyon vs Amiens ended 0-0 which was a bad result for Rudi Garcia. With Rennes and Montpellier dropping points they blew a chance to gain some ground. Youngster Cherki went closest off the bench with a great volley against the post.

Marseille won away at St Etienne 2-0. Payet with a clever bit of skill to beat Ruffier at his near post for the opener:

https://twitter.com/ugolin51/status/1225153488151371777

Marseille now 6 points clear in second place. Also the only team in the top 5 leagues yet to concede in 2020. Considering how shambolic they were at the back at times last season, that stat amazes me. AVB doing a fantastic job there.

Mr.Nice Guy · 08-02-2020 10:59pm

Weekend results so far:

Angers 0-2 Lille
Marseille 1-0 Toulouse
Rennes 0-0 Brest
Dijon 3-3 Nantes
Amiens 1-2 Monaco
Metz 1-2 Bordeaux
Nice 1-3 Nimes

Marseille tighten their grip on 2nd spot thanks to Payet's winner and Rennes dropping points. An 8 point gap now for AVB's side. Will take a big dip in form for them to miss out on Champions League football.

Lille only a point behind Rennes now in the battle for the last CL place. Saw that game last night and Osimhen took his goal well with a nice lob. They look like they have the momentum for 3rd now.

Monaco amazingly are up to 5th, despite an unconvincing 2020. Goes to show how ridiculously congested it is. They were 11th going into their game. It was an impressive win as they were 1-0 down going into the 85th minute. Moreno's subs Slimani and Fabregas were involved in the 93rd minute winner.

Poor result for Patrick Vieira's Nice losing at home to lowly Nimes. They had been leading. Also went down to ten men early in the 2nd half. Nimes still 18th but now just a point behind Dijon, who threw away the lead against Nantes on three occasions.

PSG vs Lyon is the evening game tomorrow. Tuchel has said Neymar won't be in the match squad, which gives Lyon some hope. Montpellier vs St Etienne should be good too, with implications for the European and survival battles.

RugbyLover123 · 09-02-2020 9:53pm

2-0 PSG at HT against Lyon.

Goals from Di Maria & Mbappe. Lyon have been poor enough so far with few chances. PSG missing a number of players, Silva, Neymar, Marquinhos.. and still comfortable. Mbappe is some player.

Mr.Nice Guy · 09-02-2020 11:36pm

Finished 4-2 to PSG in the end. Seems like it was a fun game, though I only caught the last bit of it. From the highlights, Mbappe looked very dangerous; he took his goal well and smashed a shot against the crossbar. Dembele seemed to do well too, which is promising for those that will likely come for him in the summer. He scored one and ought to have got another. Marcal's O.G. for the third was a comedy effort. Paris now 12 clear at the top, with Lyon down in 9th; they're 8 points adrift of the last CL place.

Caught Montpellier's 1-0 win over St Etienne this afternoon. Thought Saliba did well despite being on the losing side. I think he can do well at Arsenal. Montpellier went down to ten in the first half and Bouanga wasted a good few chances for the visitors. Puel's side still with relegation concerns but Montpellier up to 5th. Strasbourg are up to 6th with their impressive 3-0 win over Reims.

Some big games coming up concerning the European places: Monaco vs Montpellier on Friday, Lyon vs Strasbourg and Lille vs Marseille next Sunday. If Marseille win, the Champions League spot is pretty much in the bag. They'd have a 12 point gap then between themselves and Lille.

Mr.Nice Guy · 15-02-2020 11:50pm

Weekend results so far:

Monaco 1-0 Montpellier
Amiens 4-4 PSG
Nimes 1-0 Angers
Nantes 0-0 Metz
Bordeaux 2-2 Dijon
Toulouse 0-2 Nice

Poor result for Tuchel's side after he rang the changes. Played two teenagers in defence and Herrera at RB and must have figured he'd get away with it since Amiens are 19th. Paris were 3-0 down at one stage, then 4-3 up before a late equaliser. Interestingly, Tuchel after the game cast doubt on whether Neymar would make the Dortmund game. Possibly mind games but we'll see.

Good result for Monaco yesterday which sees them leapfrog Montpellier for 5th.

Nimes continue their great winning run and are now out of the bottom three; Dijon fall to 18th despite a late equaliser. Metz's point means they have gone ahead of St Etienne for the moment on goal difference - big game for Claude Puel's side tomorrow as they face fellow strugglers Brest. Toulouse continue to look doomed at the bottom, 14 points off safety; they had two players sent off and also missed a pen. 13 defeats in 14 games for them.

Some decent games tomorrow for the CL places: Lille vs Marseille is the evening match, while Rennes travel to Reims. Lyon meanwhile can overtake opponents Strasbourg for 7th with a win and keep alive their hopes; a loss though could see them 14 points off the last CL spot.

Mr.Nice Guy · 16-02-2020 11:15pm

Sunday results:

Lyon 1-1 Strasbourg
Reims 1-0 Rennes
Brest 3-2 Saint-Etienne
Lille 1-2 Marseille

Massive day for Marseille in the hunt for Champions League football. They came from behind after Osimhen had put Lille ahead. Germain had a pen saved but they still found a way to win. Even better for them is that Rennes lost, and Lyon also dropped points. Now means Marseille are 11 points clear of Rennes in 2nd place. That's significant because only the top two go straight into the group stages; third place team has to go into the qualifying round. Looks like AVB is going to bring back Champions League football which would be an outstanding achievement given what he's working with. Lyon meanwhile way back in 11th place.

Horrible result for Claude Puel's St Etienne against Brest. They were 3-0 down at half-time and are now just two points above 18th place Dijon. I like Puel but things have nosedived drastically for him the last few months. Next three games are home to Reims, away to arch rivals Lyon, and then the French Cup semi-final with Rennes. Those games could well determine his future as coach, assuming he gets that far.

Mr.Nice Guy · 21-02-2020 11:15pm

Watched Lyon's game at Metz which they won 2-0. Dembele scored from the spot, and Aouar got the second in injury time when keeper Oukidja got caught out after coming up for a corner, leaving the goal free. Cornet had taken the pen initially which was saved by Oukidja after he was miles off his line. VAR quite rightly called for it to be taken again. I was amazed Oukidja actually protested the decision:

https://twitter.com/AndiOnrubia/status/1230954823341625344

Not been a fan of Rudi Garcia but he instructed Dembele to take the retaken spot kick rather than letting Cornet have another go, and his late sub of Aouar got the winner, so it was a good night for him. Lyon up to 6th now, 4 points off the last CL place. Bruno Guimaraes, their big January signing from Brazil, also made his debut. He looked okay and moved it around well. Need to see a few more games from him.

I was keen on seeing how Habib Diallo would get on for Metz. He looked bright enough in the first half but then got himself sent off for a stupid slap near the end, effectively ending his team's chances of getting back into it:

https://twitter.com/rgomesrodrigues/status/1230969772776529921

In the other game tonight, Nice blew a 2-0 lead at home to Brest as it ended all square. Ounas and Dolberg with a goal and assist each. Nice have been very inconsistent, like many of the teams around them. They were 7th last season and if they finish below that I wonder does the board start to think about a change from Vieira.

Mr.Nice Guy · 22-02-2020 11:53pm

Saturday results:

Marseille 1-3 Nantes
Angers 1-0 Montpellier
Dijon 1-1 Monaco
Lille 3-0 Toulouse
Strasbourg 0-0 Amiens

A rare off-day for Marseille. Still look comfortable in 2nd place but wouldn't have expected that outcome. Great result for Nantes.

Turned out a very satisfactory day for Lille; a Remy brace and a Sanches goal giving them a comfortable win. Montpellier and Monaco dropping points makes it even better as Lille go 3rd for the time being. Rennes can retake the spot if they beat Nimes tomorrow.

Massive game for Claude Puel tomorrow in St Etienne's survival battle as they host Reims. He's dropped Stephane Ruffier, and his agent hasn't taken it well:

https://twitter.com/RBairner/status/1230928813321859078

Think there's a good chance with all the turmoil going on that Puel may be sacked if they lose that game. And Reims will be tricky opponents as they have the best defensive record in the league. We'll see if he still has the dressing room.

Mr.Nice Guy · 23-02-2020 10:06pm

Funny howler from PSG's Sergio Rico as he clears the ball straight into Pablo and it rebounds into his net.

https://twitter.com/1haribo1/status/1231684187943526403

It's 2-2 at the break. Cavani got his 200th goal for the club and Di Maria has put in some great balls, but overall PSG haven't been at their best. Thiago Silva went off with an injury which will be a concern for the return leg with Dortmund. Looked like a muscle issue.

In the earlier games, Rennes beat Nimes 2-1 to go back 3rd. Niang got both goals. And St Etienne conceded a pen in the 94th minute to drop two points against Reims. That would have been a precious win for Claude Puel. Next game is a visit to rivals Lyon in the derby. A bad defeat there and he may be done for.

Update: It ends 4-3 to PSG. Entertaining second half and credit to Bordeaux for giving it a go. Highlight of the game was a belter from Ruben Pardo.

https://twitter.com/LeFootballenVO3/status/1231698267655823361

Despite going 13 points clear at the top, this game suggested PSG have issues. Neymar got himself a stupid second yellow with a rash challenge made out of frustration. Tuchel's tactics continue to be questionable as well as he persists with going with 4 attackers despite the holes in defence it brings. Don't see why he needed to rest Navas either. Looking at their body language at the end it doesn't come across like all the egos are in check. Thought they were very dodgy dealing with corners too. There were some great deliveries coming from de Preville and Paris didn't look comfortable. That could be a good way for Dortmund to hurt them in the return leg.

Ligue 1 Superthread 2019/20

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