Marseille close gap to Ligue 1 leaders PSG after comeback win
Marseille kept their impressive recent form going to keep some pressure on the league leaders, with Nice also making big strides with a win.
Marseille closed the gap to Paris Saint-Germain at the top of the Ligue 1 table to four points after earning a comeback win over Rennes on Saturday.
Mason Greenwood was the spark for Roberto De Zerbi's side in their 2-1 victory as he both scored and assisted to turn the game around after Arnaud Kalimuendo's 43rd-minute strike.
It could have been worse for Marseille though, as the Rennes striker saw a penalty saved by Geronimo Rulli shortly after the half-hour mark. It is the third consecutive spot-kick the Argentine has kept out of the net.
However, Greenwood netted the equaliser on the stroke of half-time to give Marseille a needed boost at the break before then setting up Adrien Rabiot for the winner four minutes into the second half.
Marseille have picked up 16 points out of a possible 18 since the November international break, more than any other team in that period, though PSG will hope to extend their lead at the top once more when they face Saint-Etienne on Sunday.
Elsewhere, Nice moved into the top four after a resounding 4-2 win over Reims.
Evan Guessand headed Nice in front, though that lead was short-lived thanks to Junya Ito, who levelled the score again just six minutes later.
Gaetan Laborde then scored on either side of half-time – netting from the penalty spot before the break, before getting a second in the 64th minute – to give them a commanding lead.
Substitute Mamadou Diakhon gave Reims some hope as he pulled one back with a long-range strike, but Ali Abdi's late intervention restored Nice's two-goal cushion.
Franck Haise's side moved up to fourth, leapfrogging Lyon in the process after they suffered a 2-1 defeat at Brest earlier on Saturday.
Lyon failed to recover after conceding in the eighth minute, with Mahdi Camada following up his early goal by setting up Ludovic Ajorque later in the first half.
Jordan Veretout pulled one back for Lyon in first-half stoppage time, but they could not follow it up with a second goal after the break as they were condemned to a fifth league defeat of the season.
