Lille
Lille win French Ligue 1 title for fourth time
Lille won the Ligue 1 title on Sunday thanks to a 2-1 victory over Angers which ensured they were crowned French champions for the first time since 2011. An early Jonathan David strike and Burak Yilmaz’s penalty in first-half stoppage time ensured that Christophe Galtier’s Lille finished one point ahead of second-placed Paris Saint-Germain, who won 2-0 at Brest. Angelo Fulgini pulled one back in added time at the end of the match, but the hosts couldn’t stop Lille becoming champions for the fourth time in their history. The title triumph came after another away success for Lille, who finish the season unbeaten on the road since November, and ends a three-year league winning streak for PSG. Mauricio Pochettino’s PSG will have to content themselves with the French Cup in a disappointing seas...
Ligue 1 Season Finale: All eyes on Lille and Paris Saint-Germain in must-win games
The 2020/21 Ligue 1 title race goes down to the wire as three sides battle it out for the ultimate prize on the final matchday of the season. League leaders Lille harbour a slender one-point lead on second-placed Paris Saint-Germain ahead of the final round of fixtures, with Monaco in third lurking in the shadows. Les Dogues hold the Ligue 1 title reins firmly in their hands as they head to the Stade Raymond-Kopa to tackle injury-hit Angers. Monaco – From potential champions to potentially biggest losers Third-placed Monaco have an outside chance of claiming their first Ligue 1 crown since 2016/17. Sitting three points adrift of pacesetters Lille, the club from the French principality make the trip to newly-promoted Lens for Sunday’s showdown. While they remain in contention for what would...
‘Interesting’ – €45m centre-back with ‘a body like Van Dijk’ reacts to Liverpool links
Lille defender Sven Botman was heavily linked with Liverpool in January as manager Jurgen Klopp sought a quality centre-back. Virgil van Dijk, Joel Matip and Joe Gomez were all out injured, and the Reds were forced to play Fabinho and Jordan Henderson at the back. Liverpool brought in Ozan Kabak and Ben Davies on transfer deadline day but are still likely to bolster their backline in the summer and have already been linked with RB Leipzig’s Ibrahima Konate. It remains to be seen whether they are still keen on Botman, but he is under consideration at an array of top sides after his impressive campaign with Lille. The French side are two wins away from pipping Paris Saint-Germain to the title, and the 21-year-old has been crucial to their rise. Lille have conceded only 22 league goals, givin...
Ligue 1 POTY: Who deserves to win player of the year for 2020/21?
The nominees for Ligue 1 player of the season have been announced, with Paris Saint-Germain, Lille, AS Monaco and Lyon players all involved. While the Ligue 1 title race is yet to reach its conclusion, Lille remain three points ahead of Paris Saint-Germain with just two games remaining. The latter do have a significantly improved goal difference, so any slip up from Christophe Galtier’s side could change everything. Who are the nominees Neymar (PSG) Kylian Mbappe (PSG) Memphis Depay (Lyon) Wissam Ben Yedder (Monaco) Burak Yilmaz (Lille) Neymar Starting with Brazilian star Neymar, it is quite frankly a surprise to see him on this list. Neymar has only featured in 16 Ligue 1 matches this season, due to being injured for the vast majority of the campaign. Despite scoring eight goals and ...
Neymar: I am happy and proud to remain at PSG
Neymar has signed a contract extension with Paris St-Germain, keeping Brazil forward at the French giants until 30 June 2025. The 29-year-old said “happiness” was the main factor in signing a new deal. Neymar, who joined PSG in a world-record £200m deal in 2017, had been linked with a move away, including a return to Barcelona. “I have grown as a person here, as a human being and as a player, too,” he told the PSG website. Neymar was in the final year of his contract, having signed a five-year deal on his initial arrival. He has scored 85 goals and registered 51 assists in 112 games for PSG. However, he has had a difficult relationship with the club’s fans at times and was booed after expressing a desire to move back to Barcelona in 2019. Neymar said he had undergone a “very positive evolu...
Neymar on target as PSG beat Lens ahead of Man City clash
Neymar netted on 33 minutes and his corner was headed home by Marquinhos just prior to the hour mark at the Parc des Princes, with Cameroonian forward Ignatius Ganago pulling a goal back for Lens. It was a huge three points for PSG in their attempt to retain the Ligue 1 title, as Mauricio Pochettino’s side move provisionally two points clear of Lille at the top of the table. However Lille can return to the summit by beating Nice at home later on Saturday, while third-placed Monaco will return to within a single point of PSG if they defeat Lyon on Sunday. PSG are looking to win their eighth Ligue 1 title in nine years and, given how close the title race is in France this season, they could not afford to take it easy in between the two legs of their Champions League tie against City. Last se...
PSG boss: Idrissa Gueye a pleasure to work with
Paris Saint-Germain manager Mauricio Pochettino has revealed his delight to work with Idrissa Gueye and praised him for his contribution to his side. The midfielder is currently spending his second season at Parc des Princes, having teamed up with the club from Premier League side Everton in the summer of 2019. Gueye has featured in more than 60 games since joining the side and in the current campaign, he has made 42 appearances, scoring two goals and providing one assist across all competitions. His performances ensured the Parisians to their second spot on the Ligue 1 table and their progression into the semi-finals of the Champions League. Pochettino has lauded the impact of the Senegal international to his side ahead of their encounter with the Maroons. “He’s a player with experience, ...
Who will win the thrilling 2020/21 Ligue 1 title race?
As the 2020/21 Ligue 1 campaign enters its final five games of the season, the supposed ‘farmers league’ has a breathtaking title race on its hands. Three points separate current leaders Lille’s 70, from fourth-placed Lyon on 67. Paris Saint-Germain are second on 69, with Monaco third with 68. This is only the eighth time in Ligue 1 history that less than 10 points separate the top four with five games to go, and this season is sure to have a few more twists in the tale before the campaign draws to a close. Can Lille’s knack for last-gasp goals keep them on track? Will Monaco’s stunning 2021 form continue? Will the typically dominant PSG prevail? Or will Lyon secure their first title in over a decade? Sportslens takes a look at the title hopefuls’ run-ins, assessing where the opportunities...
Mbappe at the double to help PSG cut gap on leaders Lille
It was a great weekend for PSG in Ligue 1; seeing Lille draw on Friday night, they managed to cut the gap on the league leaders to just one point. Lille could only muster up a 1-1 draw against Montpellier on Friday night and so put the chance into the hands of PSG to try and cut the gap at the top of the Ligue 1 table. It was touch and go in the game though and PSG nearly fell short and came close to getting only one point, but determination shone through and they managed to come through the game by just about beating St Etienne 3-2 thanks to a Mauro Icardi 95th minute winner. They fell behind to a Denis Bouanga 78th minute strike, but it took them only one minute to equalise through Kylian Mbappe, and he got his second eight minutes later via a penalty to put his team 2-1 up in the game. ...
Paris Saint-Germain wait for Neymar to sign contract extension
Paris Saint-Germain were revelling in the joy of knocking holders Bayern Munich out of the Champions League in midweek when Neymar offered more cause for celebration. In an interview with Brazilian broadcaster TNT Sports following PSG’s away-goals victory in the quarter-finals, Neymar dropped a clear hint that he would be staying at PSG beyond the end of his current contract. “For me there is no debate, it is obvious that I feel very comfortable here and at home at Paris Saint-Germain. I feel happier than I did before,” the world’s most expensive player said. His current contract, signed following his arrival from Barcelona for 222 million euros ($264m) in 2017, runs out at the end of next season, at the same time as Kylian Mbappe’s deal. It has been reported in France since the Bayern gam...
AC Milan target duo as they prepare to let winger go
AC Milan are eyeing up two wingers in the summer, with Samu Castillejo expected to be transfer listed. Castillejo joined AC Milan in 2018 from Villarreal in a deal that saw Colombian forward Carlos Bacca move in the opposite direction. The Spaniard struggled to nail down a starting XI berth in his debut season, with 23 of his 31 league appearances coming from the bench. Castillejo has struggled to make an impact at AC Milan The following season, he got more opportunities, making 17 Serie A starts. However, he managed just two goals and three assists. This term hasn’t been much better for him, recording just one goal and no assists in his 24 league outings. As a result, the Rossoneri are expected to let him go in the summer, as reported by Calciomercato. At 26 years of age and with over two...
Tactical Analysis: Perfect Lille outclass PSG in potential Ligue 1 title-decider
For the first time in four seasons, we have a serious title race in Ligue 1 with someone other than Paris Saint-Germain in pole position. Monaco and Lyon are fairly close in the mix, but the side leading the way are Lille, who were facing PSG in a crunch top-of-the-table clash. With the two sides level on points going into the match, this certainly had the potential to be a title-decider. The two sides fought hard at the Parc de Princes, and it was Lille who emerged victors thanks to the only goal of the match. PSG looked the better side overall, but they were held by the disciplined and extremely hard-working Dogues. In this analysis, we will take a look at how they overcame the French champions. Resolute defence With just 34.9% of possession and a relatively early lead, Lille found ...
