Lyon comes back at the last minute and prevents Lille from securing 2nd place

A double-stakes match. If on the Lille side, defeating Lyon this evening allowed the northern club to continue its great series of 7 games without defeat, on the OL side, on the other hand, Pierre Sage’s men had to raise their heads after the defeat against Besiktas (0-1) and the draw against Auxerre (2-2). But this evening, there was finally a draw at the Stade Pierre Mauroy (1-1). The first big opportunity was on the side of Mastiffs. In the 9th minute of play, Angel Gomes narrowly missed the left post and thus missed his team’s first chance to open the score.

A few minutes later, Lille, still pressing on their opponents, intensified their offensives. Thomas Meunier managed to send a direct shot towards the goal, but his ball crashed onto the crossbar (14th). Sahraoui tried, just afterwards, to break through into the OL area (15th), but came up against a defender. This intensity, however, ended up paying off. After an error by the Lyon defense, Jonathan David scored the first goal of the game from close range (19th, 1-0). At the half-hour mark, on a free kick ideally located on the edge of the area, Gomes sent a cannonball into the post of Lucas Perri (32nd), who was quite helpless. The period logically ended with the advantage for Lille, who technically and physically dominated their evening rival.

OL pulls itself together in the second half

OL returned from the locker room with better motivation. This was seen in the 53rd minute of play, with a shot over the bar from Alexandre Lacazette, at the end of a great collective action. The balance of power continued to reverse, and Lille found themselves much more defensive than in the first period. Ainsley Maitland-Niles thought he would save the day by equalizing for OL in the 75th minute, but after verification by video assistance, the referee refused Lyon’s goal for offside. The Englishman was also the instigator of another important opportunity for Lyon: the right-back, having gone a few meters alone in the area after receiving a good pass, sent a shot which went just wide of the left post ( 86th).

But everything came in time to those who knew how to wait. At the very end of the match, Malick Fofana, standing out in the area, received a perfect cross from Maitland-Niles and crucified Lucas Chevalier (91st, 1-1). The young Lyonnais thus prevents Lille from positioning itself in second place in the Championship. The club will settle for 3rd position with 18 points, ahead of OM. For their part, the Gone are placed in 5th place thanks to this draw, with 15 points.