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PARIS: Nice climbed up to third place in Ligue 1 on Saturday with a 2-0 win over Lens as Lille suffered a surprise defeat by bottom side Le Havre.
A Gaetan Laborde penalty and goal from Jonathan Clauss secured a fifth straight home win for Nice, who are unbeaten at the Allianz Riviera this season.
They sit above Monaco on goal difference after the principality side lost 4-1 at runaway leaders Paris Saint-Germain on Friday, and are three points adrift of Marseille.
Lille missed the chance to move into the Champions League spots as they were beaten 2-1 at home by Le Havre, who hadn’t won a game since November.
“We were dominated in all areas. You can find all sorts of explanations for everything, but the match simply passed us by, starting with me. I could have replaced myself at half-time,” said Lille coach Bruno Genesio.
Egyptian striker Ahmed Hassan Koka scored his first goal for Le Havre since joining last month before Issa Soumare doubled their lead.
Chuba Akpom, who recently arrived at Lille on loan from Ajax, pulled one back deep into stoppage time but Le Havre held on to snap an eight-match winless run.
Le Havre switched places with Montpellier at the foot of the table but remain four points from safety.
Rennes made it back-to-back victories under new coach Habib Beye as they won 2-0 away to Saint-Etienne, rising four places to 11th.
Published in Dawn, February 10th, 2025
