Ligue 1 Review | Inconsistency fuels exciting Champions League race | OneFootball

Olympique de Marseille gained significant ground in the race for Champions League qualification over the weekend by defeating Stade Rennais, while immediate rivals AS Monaco and Lille OSC dropped points on Friday evening in what could prove to be costly draws come the end of the season.

Goals from Mason Greenwood and Adrien Rabiot were enough to consolidate Marseille’s grip on second lifting the club five points clear of Monaco. Inevitably, Les Phocéens eyes will be trained upwards as they try to apply some pressure on Paris Saint-Germain.

The title is clearly the ambition of Roberto De Zerbi’s side even if the capital club maintained their seven-point lead at the top by swatting aside AS Saint-Étienne on Sunday night (2-1). Marseille’s focus will shift towards this, but for an evening they could forget about their grander ambitions as they secured some much-treasured breathing room.

The fight for the places below Paris Saint-Germain in Ligue 1 are usually a tightly contested affair, but this season in particular looks both exceptionally congested and competitive. After this weekend only nine points separate Monaco in third from Stade Brestois in 11th.

Les Aiglons soar with clipped wings

There is something chaotic bubbling away beneath PSG and now Marseille, fuelled by an exciting inconsistency that means it is currently a guessing game to try and figure out who might end the campaign in the European slots.

Lille extended their unbeaten run to 19 games across all competitions with a draw away to AJ Auxerre but dropping points for the second week in a row meant that they loosened their grip on a Champions League place. This allowed OGC Nice to leapfrog them into fourth following a 4-2 victory over Stade de Reims.

Les Aiglons have been flying quietly under the radar this season. A disappointing Europa League campaign has distracted from the fact that the club have only lost once in their last 10 Ligue 1 fixtures. An extremely impressive run, when you consider the amount of setbacks that the club have faced.

Nice have suffered more than any other team in Ligue 1 with injuries this season. In December, the club were exceptionally close to being able to fill out their entire first-choice teamsheet with absentees. Franck Haise would have every right to complain each week about the situation he has had to navigate.

However, Nice have managed to keep their focus and the results in the league are bearing fruit. As Lille and Monaco begin to show some signs of faltering, Haise’s side are proving to grow into themselves at exactly the right time.

The chasing pack beckons

Olympique Lyonnais could have been the story of the weekend had they managed to defeat Stade Brestois. Pierre Sage’s side had the chance to draw level with Monaco on 31 points and even pip them on goal difference. Instead, they lost for only the second time in the league since being defeated by Marseille on the 22nd of September.

Below them in sixth, RC Lens are only four points off Monaco and have shown some exciting promise under head coach Will Still. There might be some dangers still to come for Les Sang et Or with this transfer window containing some peril with clubs across Europe looking to pick their bones dry.

Toulouse FC, RC Strasbourg Alsace, recently promoted Auxerre, and Brest all find themselves not too far of contention for a Champions League spot. And it is far from outlandish to think that one of them could find form at exactly the right time to fly up the table.

Ligue 1 Review

GFFN | Nick Hartland