Monday, 18 May 2015

PSG Wins 3rd Ligue 1 Title As Olympique Marseille, St Etienne Battle For Champions League Final Spot

Paris St Germain clinched a third successive Ligue 1 title, with a game to spare, and stayed on course for an unprecedented domestic treble with a 2-1 win at Montpellier on Saturday.


The Qatari-owned club needed only a point but ended the night eight points clear of their closest rivals Olympique Lyon who were held to a 1-1 home draw by Girondins Bordeaux.

The title kept Laurent Blanc’s side on course for a sweep of domestic honours, with the Parisians already winners of the League Cup and facing second tier AJ Auxerre in the French Cup final at the end of the month.

Goals from Blaise Matuidi and Ezequiel Lavezzi powered the Parisians to an impressive eighth consecutive league win, as they emerged victorious from a cat-and-mouse struggle over the latter part of the season with Lyon.

It was a fifth title in total for PSG, who were only founded in 1970.

“This title has a particular taste,” midfielder Matuidi said. “It’s the third one, it was more difficult than the others. We were often the chasers this year, we did what we needed to win it.

“We fully deserve this title. We are winners and we have something historic to go hunt for. First we have to savour tonight. PSG showed this season that we are a great team.”

Focus on the last day of the season will turn to the fight for the final Champions League spot.

Monaco stayed third on 68 points, four adrift of Lyon, after beating Metz 2-0 in the principality while Olympique Marseille and St Etienne also won to stay tied on 66 in the battle for a place in the preliminary round of next season’s competition.

Marseille thrashed Lille 4-0 while Evian Thonon Gaillard joined Racing Lens and Metz in being relegated after losing 2-1 to St Etienne.

There was relief for Toulouse, Lorient, Caen and Reims, who all went into the weekend threatened by relegation but survive for a further adventure in Ligue 1 next season.

Matuidi put PSG ahead in the 17th minute, slotting past goalkeeper Jonathan Ligali after a defence-splitting pass from Adrien Rabiot.

Lavezzi made it 2-0 in the 25th minute, from a cross by Serge Aurier, his eighth league goal of the season but Montpellier pulled one back five minutes before the break through Anthony Mounier’s shot into the top corner.

Blanc said he was over the moon watching his players dance around the Montpellier pitch, and the fans celebrate in the stands after the game.

“We had to wait until this penultimate game to win the title but that makes it even more pleasurable than last year in a way. I love this job and I have to thank my staff because without them a coach is nothing,” said Blanc.

Lyon may have come up short after leading the table for much of the second half of the season, but they can at least console themselves with a return to the Champions League group stages next season.

They conceded an early goal at home to Bordeaux through Enzo Crivelli but were soon level through Nabil Fekir in the ninth minute.

“We would have liked the win tonight so as to make the celebrations more beautiful,” said Lyon coach Hubert Fournier. “It’s been an incredible season, when you think we were 17th at the end of August. This result assures us of second spot.”

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