Late David double keeps Lille top of Ligue 1
PARIS: Canadian forward Jonathan David’s late double helped Lille edge out Marseille 20 on Wednesday to remain two points clear of Paris Saint-Germain at the top of Ligue 1.
Mauricio Pochettino’s depleted reigning champions stayed second with a 1-0 victory at Bordeaux, with Lyon one point further back after beating Rennes by the same scoreline.
Fourth-placed Monaco slipped to seven points off the pace as the Principality club lost 1-0 at Strasbourg.
Christophe Galtier’s Lille extended their unbeaten run to 10 league matches but were frustrated by eighth-placed Marseille at the Stade PierreMauroy for almost 90 minutes.
David and Timothy Weah both saw second-half attempts saved by Steve Mandanda.
But when the Marseille goalkeeper kept out Jonathan
Ikone’s effort in the 90th minute, David was on hand to tap in.
The 21-year-old put the result beyond doubt in the third minute of added time, diverting home Ikone’s cross to score his ninth league goal this term.
“We went looking for it (the win) until the end, the players showed courage and self-sacrifice,” said Galtier. “The title? We are here.”
Lille visit Monaco in their next Ligue 1 match in 11 days’ time as they continue their bid for a first major trophy since winning the league and French Cup double in 2011.
PSG brushed off the absences of Neymar, the suspended Kylian Mbappe and Angel Di Maria to keep up the pressure.
With in-form striker Moise Kean also out after testing positive for coronavirus, it was left to Pablo Sarabia to score the winning goal.
The Spaniard, making his first league start in a month, grabbed the breakthrough in the 20th minute.
PSG were relatively comfortable for the remainder of the game, although Bordeaux winger Hatem Ben Arfa did fire narrowly wide midway through the second half.