A new weekend means the return of Ligue 1. And in the second of its 34 rounds, French football’s top flight has once again provided us with some interesting facts.
Spoiler alert: PSG is not yet at the top of the table!
So, if you missed it, Sports Talk United brings you a recap of the main highlights from the second day of the championship.
OM wins a seven-goal match
In an ideal world, OM would have capitalised on their start to the season to validate the interesting summer they had just had.
But in this club, nothing is ever that easy.
The consequences of last week’s defeat at Stade Rennais (1-0) were enough to remind us of that. And it was after a turbulent week, marked by the sidelining of Adrien Rabiot and Jonathan Rowe, that the French vice-champions welcomed Paris FC to their Velodrome stadium on Saturday.
The perfect opportunity to finally kick off their 2025-26 season… or to plunge into a deeper crisis.
A question to which Mason Greenwood, then Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, quickly provided some answers, breaking the Parisian deadlock twice. But the ambitious newly-promoted team have plenty of resources. Ilan Kebbal, with a sumptuous strike, and Moses Simon reminded everyone of that.
And just when doubt seemed to creep into the minds of the Marseille players, the solution finally came from the bench. Or rather, from the young players on the bench. Bilal Nadir spearheaded the charge.
The 21-year-old made a sensational entrance, distinguishing himself by delivering two decisive passes in the space of 10 minutes. Darryl Bakola and Robinio Vaz, also brought on by Roberto De Zerbi, also played a key role in Olympique’s success, with the latter even scoring his team’s fifth goal.
A positive outcome for a club where, in this context, the end certainly justifies the means.
Lyon conquered by its Englishman
He came very close to winning Sports Talk United‘s Player of the Week award last week, but today Tyler Morton has finally been honoured with it.
The English midfielder once again shone in OL’s midfield. Although he only joined the Rhône-based club at the beginning of August, he has adapted so well that it seems as though he has been playing there for several years.
Leading a double pivot alongside Tanner Tessmann, Morton shines as much for his play as for his accuracy, technical skill and relentless running. All of which has won over Lyon fans, who have already adopted him as one of their own.
Rennes definitely enjoys getting itself into trouble
The weeks go by, but don’t look the same for Rennes. Or maybe they do.
After their heroic victory over Marseille (0-1) in the season opener last Friday, Habib Beye’s men were hoping to build on their momentum with a trip to Lorient.
However, they didn’t count on a setback. Nor on two. Already forced to play with one man down on the first day, the Rouge et Noir suffered a similar fate on the second. The blame lies with Mahdi Camara’s early sending off (6th minute), who was also making his first start in his new colours.And if the task of winning 10 against 11 didn’t seem difficult enough, Christopher Wooh decided to follow his new teammate’s example… just five minutes later.
It was enough to make you want to bang your head against the wall.
However, even with nine men, the prospect of an unlikely victory did not seem entirely unrealistic. At least, that was before Sambou Soumano crucified Brice Samba just before the end of the first half. A heavy blow for the valiant Rennes side, who saw Lorient score three more goals in the second half to seal a convincing victory. It’s a safe bet that they’ll be more careful next week. Let’s hope so, anyway.
Ligue 1 MD2 Results
( ) = League position
- (3) PSG 1-0 Angers SCO (11)
- (7) OM 5-2 Paris FC (17)
- (9) OGC Nice 3-1 AJ Auxerre (12)
- (1) OL 3-0 FC Metz (18)
- (6) Lorient 4-0 Stade Rennais (13)
- (4) Strasbourg 1-0 FC Nantes (15)
- (2) Toulouse 2-0 Brest (14)
- (16) Le Havre 1-2 RC Lens (10)
- (5) Lille 1-0 AS Monaco (8)
