Paris Saint-Germain’s Guillaume Hoarau scored a last-gasp equalizer in a thrilling 4-4 draw at Olympique Lyonnais on Saturday, although they still surrendered top spot in Ligue 1 to Montpellier Herault.
PSG, unbeaten in all competitions since Carlo Ancelotti took over as manager from Antoine Kombouare two months ago, recovered from two goals down as Montpellier, who beat Girondins de Bordeaux 1-0, moved a point clear with 53 points from 25 games.
“We have mixed feelings, because we cannot concede goals like that,” striker Hoarau told French TV channel Orange Foot.
PSG went ahead after 21 minutes when Hoarau slotted the ball past France goalkeeper Hugo Lloris from a Jeremy Menez free-kick, but Lyon, who are fifth on 40 points, stormed back.
Bafetimbi Gomis volleyed home from close range in the 34th minute and Lisandro Lopez doubled their tally when he latched onto a Michel Bastos cross two minutes later.
Brazil winger Bastos then fired a lone-range half-volley into the top corner to make it 3-1 five minutes before the break as Italian Ancelotti sat down on the bench with a vacant stare.
However, Nene pulled one back for the visitors with a penalty three minutes into first-half stoppage-time.
Lyon made a tame start to the second half, before Jimmy Briand headed home from a Bastos free-kick in the 57th minute to restore their two-goal advantage.
The visitors did not give up, though, and defender Marcos Ceara, who had just replaced Christophe Jallet, reduced the arrears on 73 minutes with a cross-shot.
Lloris then pulled off a couple of fine saves to deny Nene and Thiago Motta from close range, but four minutes into stoppage-time Hoarau headed in a Mathieu Bodmer cross to clinch a point.
Montpellier’s match was not as spectacular, but Utaka’s 80th-minute header from a Marco Estrada corner saw off Bordeaux.
Bordeaux, who were unbeaten in Ligue 1 this year, came close in the first half when Poland international forward Ludovic Obraniak curled a shot against the post just before the break.
AS Saint-Etienne stayed fourth on 43 points following a 0-0 draw at AJ Auxerre, who slipped a place to second bottom, as OGC Nice moved out of the relegation zone with a 1-0 home win over Stade Malherbe Caen.
Also on Saturday, AC Ajaccio defeated Dijon FCO 2-1, Evian Thonon Gaillard beat AS Nancy-Lorraine 2-0 and Valenciennes downed Lorient 2-0.
Additional reporting by staff writer
SIBLING RIVALRY: Marc Marquez was locked in a duel with his little brother, falling behind at one point before recovering for his first season-opening victory since 2014 Six-time world champion Marc Marquez yesterday won the MotoGP season-opening Thailand Grand Prix to complete a dominant debut weekend at his new Ducati Lenovo Team, having also romped to Saturday’s sprint. The Spanish great took the 26-lap grand prix by 1.732 seconds for his 63rd MotoGP victory from younger brother Alex Marquez, who is still seeking a first checkered flag, with Francesco Bagnaia third to complete an all-Ducati podium. It completed a perfect weekend for Marc Marquez, who took pole position, the sprint victory and the grand prix win for a maximum 37 points to open the 22-leg 2025 campaign. He led from
AC Milan’s slender hopes of reaching next season’s UEFA Champions League took another hit on Thursday with a 2-1 defeat at Bologna which left them eight points from Serie A’s top four. Sergio Conceicao’s team sit eighth, some way behind fourth-placed Juventus after losing an entertaining contest at the Stadio Renato Dall’Ara, a match which was rescheduled from October last year due to torrential rain and flooding. Swathes of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy, much of which is fertile agricultural land, had been left under water following a massive autumn downpour. Dan Ndoye prodded home the decisive goal in the 82nd minute
VALUABLE POINT: Relegation-threatened Valencia snatched a thrilling 3-3 draw at CA Osasuna thanks to a remarkable backheel volley by Umar Sadiq Barcelona on Sunday secured a comfortable 4-0 win over Real Sociedad to move back top of La Liga. Aritz Elustondo’s early red card gave Hansi Flick’s side a comfortable afternoon, with Gerard Martin, Marc Casado, Ronald Araujo and Robert Lewandowski on the score sheet. Atletico Madrid beat Athletic Bilbao on Saturday to temporarily knock the Catalans from their perch, while Real Madrid, third, lost at Real Betis Balompie. Flick was able to rotate his side a little ahead of the UEFA Champions League round-of-16 visit to face SL Benfica tomorrow and still move one point above Atletico. “There were a lot of things that
Former Australian motorcycle gang member-turned-golfer Ryan Peake, who served a lengthy jail term for assault, yesterday produced a “life-changing” maiden win to qualify for The Open Championship. Peake held his nerve for a one-stroke victory at the New Zealand Open, earning him a berth at the major in Portrush, Northern Ireland, in July, pending clearance to travel as a convicted criminal. The 31-year-old from Perth celebrated animatedly and was showered with champagne by friends on the 18th green of the Millbrook Resort course near Queenstown after a redemption story rarely seen in the refined sport of golf. Peake held back tears as he
RSS