PSG Stumbles in Monaco but Holds Onto Ligue 1 Summit
In a surprising turn of events in France's top football league, Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) was handed a shocking 1-0 defeat by AS Monaco on Saturday. Despite this setback, the Parisian giants managed to cling to the top position in the Ligue 1 standings because their closest challengers, Olympique de Marseille, were held to a 2-2 draw by Toulouse.
Minamino's Moment Seals Victory for Monaco
The only goal of the match came from Japanese international Takumi Minamino, a former Liverpool player. In the second half, Minamino expertly controlled a cross from Aleksandr Golovin before finishing past the goalkeeper, securing a crucial victory for Monaco. The win was especially hard-fought as Monaco had to see out the final stages, including seven minutes of stoppage time, with only ten men after their former PSG defender, Thilo Kehrer, was sent off in the 80th minute following a VAR review.
This result ended a dismal run of three consecutive league losses for Monaco, provisionally lifting them to sixth place in the table. For PSG, this marks only their second domestic defeat of the campaign, the other being against Marseille back in September.
Marseille's Missed Opportunity and Late Drama
The door was wide open for Marseille to claim the top spot with a win at home. However, following a draining Champions League victory over Newcastle United, they produced a sluggish first-half performance. Toulouse took a surprise lead through Brazilian forward Emersonn.
Marseille fought back in the second half, with goals from Igor Paixao and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, who celebrated by ripping off his shirt, seemingly sending his team to the league's summit. But in a dramatic twist during stoppage time, young Argentine substitute Santiago Hidalgo headed in a long throw from Mark McKenzie to silence the home crowd and secure a 2-2 draw for Toulouse.
This leaves the Ligue 1 standings tightly contested. PSG remains at the top with 30 points from 14 games, just one point ahead of Marseille. The spotlight now turns to Lens, who sit in third place, two points behind PSG, and can go top if they win their away match against Angers on Sunday.
Coaches React to the Ligue 1 Drama
PSG coach Luis Enrique did not mince words in his assessment, calling it his team's "worst match of the season." He admitted, "We were not precise enough and we made too many individual and collective mistakes. Neither team played at a very high level, but they played better than us."
Meanwhile, Monaco's coach Sebastien Pocognoli expressed his satisfaction with the much-needed victory, stating it was "satisfying to get back to winning ways, all the more so against one of the best teams in Europe."
In other Saturday action, the game between Paris FC and bottom club Auxerre concluded in a 1-1 draw.
