This Sunday’s Ligue 1 action offered plenty of storylines — could Strasbourg maintain form, would Rennes bounce back, and what about Lyon? Here’s everything you need to know from another eventful day across France.
Rennes finally win
For the first time since September 14, Rennes have tasted victory in Ligue 1. Stuck in a dreadful run of form that put coach Habib Beye on the hot seat, the Bretons finally broke their slump — and in emphatic fashion. Facing one of the league’s most exciting sides and fresh off a convincing midweek win, Rennes delivered a ruthless display to beat Strasbourg.
Esteban Le Paul was the star of the night, scoring a brilliant hat-trick to power his team to victory. Strasbourg, capable of troubling PSG one week but falling apart the next, once again showed their inconsistency with a fourth defeat of the season.
Multiplex : joy all around the North of France and Metz smile again
Northern France was all smiles this weekend. Both Lens and Lille picked up important wins: Lens brushed aside Lorient 3–0, while Lille edged Angers 1–0. The results lift them to third and fourth place in the table, bouncing back perfectly from their midweek setbacks.
Further west, Metz secured their second win of the season after beating Lens on Wednesday. Focused and disciplined, they took full advantage of defensive errors from Nantes’ goalkeeper Lopes to score twice. Metz climb off the bottom of the table and can finally glimpse a more positive run after a nightmare start.
Meanwhile, Toulouse and Le Havre played out a dull 0–0 draw with little to remember.
Lyon hold a good draw at Brest
Down to ten men after just eight minutes following Hans Hateboer’s red card, Lyon showed character and defensive grit to leave Brest with a hard-fought point. The hosts dominated with the numerical advantage but couldn’t beat Lyon’s outstanding goalkeeper, Dominik Grief, who produced several key saves — including a decisive stop on Lascary late in the game.
The draw keeps Lyon in sixth place and gives them something to build on ahead of a tough run of fixtures.