Tim Weah & Lille dropped points again, while Konrad de la Fuente & his Marseille side saw their game suspended due to unruly fans invading the field in Nice.
Saint-Etienne 1 – 1 Lille
Tim Weah was again in the starting lineup for this second game of the season but for the second week, the French champions were unable to secure a victory as they shared the points with Saint-Etienne. Neither team has yet to take three points yet this season, with the hosts drawing all three of their games.
Burak Yilmaz put the Dogues ahead not long before the intermission but was unable to hold on to their lead as the Saints snatched a point with five minutes left on the clock.
Both teams had few opportunities in the first half; the Saints’ Denis Bouanga should have scored with a header and at the other end, after a defensive mishap Weah should have provided an assist but the ball to Yilmaz, although well struck, was blocked by Saidou Sow.
In the 38th minute, it was the Turkish international that finally broke the deadlock after a defensive mishap. And a second one nearly came a few minutes later from Canadian Jonathan David but Etienne Green between the sticks kept his team in the game with a half-decent save.
The second half also saw chances at both ends but it wasn’t until the 85th minute when Sow took advantage of a corner kick and nodded home to collect a point.
Lille will go looking for all three points over the weekend when they host Montpellier.
Notes
Konrad de la Fuente got into the game early in the second half on Sunday night when Olympic Marseille traveled along the Mediterranean coast to take on OGC Nice.
It was a funny old night in Nice as the game was stopped due to fans climbing out of the stands as they attempted to attack Marseille players, in particular Dimitri Payet, who, while taking a corner kick had a water bottle thrown at him from the stands. He threw it back and pandemonium ensued.
The referee halted the game and it was eventually suspended as the safety of the Marseille players could not be ensured. Investigations are underway.
Marseille will hope for a quieter time when they welcome Saint-Etienne over the weekend.
Nicholas Gioacchini came off the bench for Caen in the 71st minute as the Normandy team came away with a 1-0 win over winless Nancy on Saturday night. Next up will be a midweek flight to the island of Corsica to make up the game against Ajaccio. Then over the weekend, they head to Nimes in the South of France.
