Daijiworld Media Network - Paris
Paris, Jan 18: Lens returned to the top of the Ligue 1 table with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over struggling Auxerre on Saturday, while Marseille kept up the pressure on the leaders with an emphatic win over Angers.
Reigning French and European champions Paris Saint-Germain had moved to the summit on Friday after a convincing 3-0 home win against Lille inspired by Ousmane Dembele. However, Lens responded within 24 hours, extending their winning streak to 10 matches across all competitions.
A second-half strike from Wesley Said proved decisive at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis. The French youth international controlled a cross from Malang Sarr expertly before firing past goalkeeper Donovan Leon in the 65th minute to register his eighth league goal of the season. The result restored Lens’ one-point lead at the top of the standings.
Lens started cautiously in a tense first half, with Saud Abdulhamid testing Leon early on and home fans appealing unsuccessfully for a penalty after captain Adrien Thomasson went down in the box. Auxerre came close to taking the lead just before the break when Naouirou Ahamada’s effort narrowly missed the target.
Lens coach Pierre Sage later admitted concern over his side’s slow starts. “I don’t think we’re running out of steam because we were able to turn things around in the second half,” he said, adding that the pattern was “something to be taken seriously”.
Whatever was said at half-time worked, as Lens emerged with greater intensity after the break. They created several chances, with Florian Thauvin and Mamadou Sangare going close, while Leon produced a fine save to keep the scoreline respectable. In the end, Lens held firm to secure their 14th league win of the season. Auxerre remain 17th, four points adrift of safety.
In Sunday’s late match, Marseille stayed within eight points of Lens after a dominant 5-2 win away to Angers. Roberto De Zerbi’s side delivered a blistering first half, with Amine Gouiri, Mason Greenwood, Hamed Traore and Timothy Weah all finding the net.
Angers pulled one back through Amine Sbai in stoppage time, but the contest was effectively decided before the break. Marseille added another late goal to seal their first league win of 2026.
Elsewhere, Toulouse inflicted further misery on Nice with a commanding 5-1 victory, leaving the south coast side just four points above the relegation play-off zone.