Mark McKenzie got his Ligue 1 adventure underway with his first start, while loanee Caleb Wiley was part of Strasbourg’s victory over the weekend.
Nice 1 – 1 Toulouse
Having just joined the team a couple of weeks ago, Mark McKenzie found himself in Toulouse’s starting line-up and put in a 65 minute shift on the left side of a three-man back line in the TFC defense.
The game was far from a nail-biter with the two sides sharing possession, 50-50 and Nice hitting the target three times, compared to Toulouse’s two. The hosts thought that they had taken a lead just before half time but after the referee consulted the VAR, he changed his mind and cancelled Mohamed-Ali Cho’s goal.
The first goal however came eight minutes after the re-start and it was Nice who were celebrating after Hicham Boudaoui’s through-ball picked out Jonathan Clauss who managed to find the back of the net from a difficult angle. Shavy Babicka equalized in the 73rd minute and that is pretty much all that got the fans to their feet for the rest of the game.
Next up, Toulouse will host Marseille over the weekend. The Olympians are currently in fifth place after their draw with Reims, while Toulouse sits in the 11th spot.
Strasbourg 3 – 1 Rennes
Caleb Wiley was in the Strasbourg starting line-up when the Blue and Whites hosted Stade Rennes. The American played 80 minutes, adding to the 94 that he played the past weekend against Montpellier. Scoring early in the first half, after arriving in France from Atlanta United last month.
The Alsace side took the lead in the 23rd minute after Saidou Sow picked out Brazilian, Andrey Santos. Both Wiley and Santos are on loan to the French side from Chelsea.
After the intermission the lead was doubled when Emanuel Emegha scored his first of the season, though Ludovic Blas pulled one back for the SRFC not 10 minutes later. But all was set right when Christophe Wooh beat his own keeper to hand the victory to their hosts with only minutes left on the clock.
Wiley’s side will hit the road next and take on Lyon, possibly with a chance to say hello to fellow American, Tanner Tessmann, if that deal goes through.
Notes
Folarin Balogun never got off the bench as his Monaco side beat Lyon on the road 2-0. Next up for the Red and Whites will be a visit from RC Lens.
Emmanuel Sabbi was missing from Le Havre’s starting line-up when they came away from Saint Etienne with a 2-0 victory. Next up for the Sky and Navy is a visit from Auxerre.