Football Further

‘Match reports’

“PARIS — Holders Lille reluctantly relinquished their grip on the Coupe de France after going down 2-1 at local rivals Valenciennes in the last 16 at a wintry Stade du Hainaut on Wednesday.”

My AFP round-up of Wednesday’s Coupe de France matches, including a shock defeat for Lille and a hard-fought win for Lyon, can be read here.

“PARIS — Marseille dug deep to come from behind and win 2-1 at Rennes on Sunday, extending their winning run to seven games in all competitions and returning to within two points of the Champions League positions in Ligue 1.”

My AFP round-up of the weekend’s Ligue 1 matches, featuring a brace for Lille debutant Nolan Roux and a last-minute winner by Montpellier’s Olivier Giroud, can be found here.

“PARIS — Extra-time goals from Morgan Amalfitano and Loïc Rémy brought Marseille a hard-earned 3-1 victory over Le Havre on Sunday, sending them into the Coupe de France last 16 and extending their winning run to six straight games.”

My round-up of the weekend’s Coupe de France action for AFP, including narrow wins over lower-league opposition for Marseille, Lille and Bordeaux, can be read here.

“PARIS — Lille’s French title defence received a significant setback on Sunday as their 17-game unbeaten run came to an end in a 2-0 defeat at resurgent Marseille in which Loïc Rémy claimed both goals.”

Read my AFP match report on Marseille’s victory over Lille, as well as a round-up of all the weekend’s Ligue 1 action, here.

“PARIS — Diego Lugano’s 93rd-minute header gave Paris Saint-Germain a 2-1 victory over fifth-tier Saint-Colomban Locminé in the French Cup on Sunday and spared Carlo Ancelotti from humiliation in his first game as PSG coach.”

Read my AFP round-up of the Coupe de France round of 64, including an uncomfortable baptism for new PSG coach Carlo Ancelotti, here.

“PARIS — Paris Saint-Germain were prevented from regaining top spot in Ligue 1 after being held to a 0-0 draw by defending champions Lille in an engaging game at Parc des Princes on Sunday.”

Read my AFP match report here.

“PARIS — Marseille put a trying week behind them in the best possible fashion on Sunday night, with a 3-0 victory at home to Paris Saint-Germain that put a sizeable dent in their arch rivals’ title hopes.”

To read my AFP match report on the first ‘clasico‘ of the Ligue 1 season, click here.

“PARIS — Laurent Blanc tried to emphasise the positives after watching France begin their preparations for Euro 2012 with a lacklustre 1-0 friendly win over the United States at Stade de France on Friday.”

Read my AFP match report here.

“PARIS — Joe Cole capped a Lille fightback with the third goal in a 3-1 defeat of Lyon on Sunday that allowed the defending champions to steal a march on their rivals in the nascent Ligue 1 title race.”

To read my AFP round-up of the weekend’s Ligue 1 action, click here.

“MARSEILLE — An injury-time goal by substitute Aaron Ramsey gave Arsenal a 1-0 win at Marseille on Wednesday that enabled Arsene Wenger’s side to leapfrog their opponents to top spot in Champions League Group F.”

My AFP match report can be read here.

“A Kévin Gameiro hat-trick gave Paris Saint-Germain a 3-1 win at Ajaccio on Sunday that enabled the big-spending club from the capital to restore their three-point lead at the top of Ligue 1.”

To read my round-up of the weekend’s Ligue 1 action for AFP, click here.

France are a point from a place at Euro 2012 after beating Albania 3-0 on Friday, but fresh injuries have stretched Laurent Blanc’s resources even more thinly ahead of Tuesday’s game with Bosnia-Herzegovina. You can read my AFP reaction piece from Stade de France here.

Javier Pastore claimed his fifth league goal of the season as Paris Saint-Germain beat Lyon 2-0 at a raucous Parc des Princes on Sunday to open up a three-point lead at the top of Ligue 1. Read my AFP match report here.

“PARIS — Eleven points separate Lyon and Marseille after OL defeated their title rivals 2-0 on Sunday to go top of Ligue 1 and consign Didier Deschamps’ hapless side to the bottom of the table.”

You can read my round-up of the weekend’s Ligue 1 action for AFP here.

“LISBON — Manchester United were indebted to a superb Ryan Giggs goal as they drew 1-1 with Benfica on Wednesday despite a below-par performance in their Champions League Group C opener.”

You can read my AFP match report here.