Marseille beat 10-man Toulouse to reclaim second spot in league

Marseille reclaimed second spot in Ligue 1 when they won 2-0 at 10-man Toulouse who cracked in the final 15 minutes.

Earlier on Sunday, Bordeaux edged in-form Monaco 2-1 at home to briefly climb into third and Saint-Etienne drew 0-0 at home against Montpellier.

In Toulouse, the home team were reduced to 10 men when right back Steven Moreira drove his studs into Bouna Sarr’s knee and received a red card after a video review.

Marseille dominated a scruffy match but struggled to break down Toulouse. The home team defended in depth and even had a chance to take the lead in the 70th minute but goalkeeper Steve Mandanda saved Ibrahim Sangare’s header with his foot.

Marseille responded with a decisive moment of inspiration in the 76th minute.

Dimitri Payet drew defenders then threaded a clever reverse pass to the darting Dario Benedetto who danced past Baptiste Reynet and coolly slid the ball into the goal.

Three minutes later, Toulouse presented Marseille with a second. Left-back Issiaga Sylla drove a clearance into Valere Germain. The ball bounced to Nemanja Radonjic, who advanced into the penalty area and curled a shot into the net.

“We keep our second place and we have to keep going like this,” said Marseille coach Andre Villas-Boas.

Marseille climbed to 25 points from 14 matches, eight behind leaders Paris Saint-Germain but one ahead of Angers. Bordeaux and Saint-Etienne are fourth and fifth on 22. Toulouse remain second from bottom.

Monaco, who had climbed away from the relegation zone with three victories in their previous four league games, took the lead against Bordeaux with a goal by Islam Slimani on 15 minutes.

After that, even though the hosts’ fans fell silent in the first half as part of a protest against their owners, the visitors failed to exploit the makeshift home defence.

Instead, Brazilian Pablo levelled with a powerful header from a corner after 29 minutes.

In the 67th minute, Slimani handled while standing in the wall at a free kick, conceding a penalty and incurring his second yellow card.

Nicolas de Preville converted the spot-kick to give Bordeaux victory.

Agence France-Presse

French League results on Sunday: Bordeaux 2 (Pablo 29, De Preville 69-pen) Monaco 1 (Slimani 15); Saint-Etienne 0 Montpellier 0; Toulouse 0 Marseille 2 (Benedetto 76, Radonjic 80)