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NEYMAR STRETCHERED OFF IN PSG’S DEFEAT BY LYON, AS OSIMHEN’S FORMER CLUB, LILLE TAKE OVER LIGUE 1 TOP SPOT

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Paris Saint-Germain were deprived of the top spot in Ligue 1 after the three-time defending champions were beaten by Lyon 1-0 at home on Sunday (Dec 13).

The slump for PSG at the Parc des Princes sent the first place to Lille, who defeated Bordeaux 2-1 earlier in the day. Lyon are second on goal difference while PSG are one point off in third place. Marseille are fourth one further point behind but with two games in hand.

What added to the woes of the capital club was the injury of its ace forward Neymar, who was screaming in agony and clutching his ankle after a heavy tackle by Thiago Mendes. The Brazil star was carried off on a stretcher and his countryman Mendes was shown a direct red card.

“No news about Neymar,” PSG’s head coach Thomas Tuchel said after the game, which was the fourth defeat for PSG this season.

“He’s with the physio and the doctors and we have to wait for the test tomorrow,” the German added.

Zimbabwean Tino Kadewere scored in the first half to help Lyon extend their unbeaten run to 11 games. The hosts allowed their rival only 35 per cent ball possession but struggled to find a gap in the committed defence as only one of their seven attempts was on target, while the visitors had five on target from nine shots.

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“We were never ready to play this game. The team was very tired mentally, we made a lot of mistakes and didn’t play with enough rhythm and confidence,” Tuchel said, referring to his team’s exertions in reach the Champions League last 16. “We did not concentrate enough.”

The last win for Lyon at the Parc des Princes was in the 2007-2008 season, the last time they won the league title.

“We defended well, we destroyed their strength, and then played well enough in attack to score at least once,” said coach Rudi Garcia.

Also on Sunday, early league front runners Rennes were back to winning form, beating Nice 1-0 away to secure their first victory since November.

-XINHUA

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Kunle Solaja is the author of landmark books on sports and journalism as well as being a multiple award-winning journalist and editor of long standing. He is easily Nigeria’s foremost soccer diarist and Africa's most capped FIFA World Cup journalist, having attended all FIFA World Cup finals from Italia ’90 to Qatar 2022. He was honoured at the Qatar 2022 World Cup by FIFA and AIPS.

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