PSG BACK ON TOP: DOUé, BARCOLA, AND RAMOS SECURE LEAD AS LENS BOTTLE LEAD
PSG are back on top: Discover how Lens threw away a two-goal lead to Monaco, handing Luis Enrique’s side a major title boost.
Lens kicked off the day one point clear of PSG at the top of the table. They looked set to stay there, leading Monaco by two goals in the second half until it all fell apart. In just a few chaotic minutes, they collapsed and suffered their first home defeat since August.
That stumble handed PSG a golden chance to jump back into first place. They didn’t waste it. Facing the league’s bottom team at Parc des Princes, PSG barely broke a sweat. Desire Doue, Bradley Barcola, and Goncalo Ramos all found the net.
Now PSG are two points ahead of Lens with 11 games to go. Lyon, sitting third, could close the gap to six if they beat Strasbourg on Sunday.
Luis Enrique, PSG’s coach, didn’t hold back when speaking to Ligue 1+. “The Lens are having an incredible season,” he said. “But we’ve still got 11 matches left, and we need to keep improving if we want to keep the title.”
Doue got a spot in the starting lineup after coming off the bench for the injured Ousmane Dembele and scoring twice in PSG’s 3-2 win against Monaco in midweek Champions League action. Against Metz, he wasted no time, scoring just three minutes in after a slick pass from Warren Zaire-Emery sent him clear from halfway.
PSG’s second goal came right before halftime. Metz keeper Jonathan Fischer managed to stop a Lucas Hernandez header, but Barcola was standing just about on the goal line to tap in the rebound.
Ramos could have made it 3-0 earlier in the second half, but he missed a golden chance. Later, though, he made up for it, smashing in his 11th goal of the season with less than 15 minutes left.
Enrique rested several key players with the looming second leg against Monaco on Wednesday. Dembele didn’t play at all.
Meanwhile, in Lens, Odsonne Edouard put the home team ahead just three minutes in, finishing off a pass from Adrien Thomasson. Lens was chasing a club record, an 11th straight home league win, and Florian Thauvin’s goal early in the second half made it look likely.
But Monaco had other ideas. Folarin Balogun pulled one back just after the hour mark, scoring his 11th of the season. That goal flipped the momentum. Denis Zakaria soon equalised, and then substitute Ansu Fati completed the turnaround with a third Monaco goal. Three goals in 11 wild minutes, suddenly, Lens were reeling.
For a team that came into the weekend with the best defensive record, Lens didn’t just lose; they unravelled. “That was stupid. We had the victory in our hands,” said coach Pierre Sage, clearly frustrated. “We’re very disappointed, but we can’t play the victim. This needs to be a lesson to help us grow.”
Monaco’s win moves them up to sixth, right back in the hunt for European football after a strong five-match run.
Elsewhere, Toulouse and Paris FC ended 1-1. Julian Vignolo scored late to deny Paris FC the win after Marshall Munetsi had put them ahead. Paris FC, despite the wealth of the Arnault family backing them, has just one win in its last 12 league games. By late Saturday, word was out that coach Stephane Gilli had been sacked, with ex-PSG boss Antoine Kombouare lined up as his replacement.
Marseille, sitting fourth, lost 2-0 at Brest on Friday in Habib Beye’s debut as head coach. Not the start he wanted.
SCHEDULE SHIFT: LIGUE 1 POSTPONES PSG VS NANTES TO FAVOR CHAMPIONS LEAGUE PREPARATIONS
Ligue 1 has officially moved PSG’s clash with Nantes to April, giving Paris a massive rest advantage for their game vs Chelsea.
PSG just got a big break ahead of their Champions League clash with Chelsea.
On Friday morning, the draw handed last year’s winners a tough last-16 matchup against Chelsea, the same team that beat them in the Club World Cup final back in July.
Luis Enrique and Liam Rosenior probably hoped to avoid each other until later in the tournament. But here they are, set to meet again, having crossed paths before thanks to Rosenior’s time at Strasbourg. The first leg lands on March 11 in Paris, with the return in London on March 17.
Originally, both teams had league matches wedged between those two legs. But now, Ligue 1 has given PSG a helping hand. They agreed to move PSG’s game against Nantes so Paris can focus on the Champions League. According to a statement from Ligue 1, the PSG-Nantes match will now take place the week of April 20, with the exact date still up in the air.
No word yet on whether Chelsea will try to shift their own fixture pile-up. The Premier League rarely grants these sorts of requests, so don’t count on it. Still, with Chelsea set to play Newcastle, another Champions League side, on March 14, both clubs would probably love a schedule change if they had the option.
Looking at the schedules, Chelsea’s road looks brutal. Between their trip to Arsenal this Sunday and March 21, they’ll cram in seven games. After Arsenal, they go away to Aston Villa, Wrexham in the FA Cup, and then PSG. Four times in three weeks, they get just three days to recover. Only twice do they have a four-day breather.
PSG’s calendar is a lot kinder. From March 1 to March 22, they play just four times. They’ll have an extra day to get ready for the first leg with Chelsea and three more days to rest up for the second game in England. In fact, between now and March 11, PSG only play once. Chelsea, meanwhile, faces three matches before heading to Paris. That’s a big advantage for the French club.
ARSENAL NEWS: ARSENAL VIEW SENNY MAYULU AS PRIMARY LONG-TERM SUCCESSOR TO KAI HAVERTZ
Arsenal have joined Chelsea and Man City in a €60m race for PSG’s Senny Mayulu, viewed as a potential successor to Kai Havertz.
Arsenal are looking to outdo Tottenham again this summer, this time by targeting PSG’s Senny Mayulu. Reports say Arsenal have joined the chase for the young playmaker, but they’re not alone; Chelsea, Manchester City, Aston Villa, and Newcastle are all interested too.
Last year, Arsenal snatched Eberechi Eze from Crystal Palace right out from under Spurs. Eze hasn’t exactly been on fire, but he did manage to score in both games against Tottenham. Now, Arsenal seem ready to twist the knife a little deeper by making a move for Mayulu, someone Tottenham tried and failed to sign last September, according to TEAMtalk.
CaughtOffside now reports that Arsenal and Chelsea are front-runners for Mayulu this summer. What helps their case? Talks over a new contract between Mayulu and PSG have stalled, and as things stand, he’ll enter the last year of his deal soon. The sticking point? Salary. Mayulu wants more than PSG is willing to offer, but Premier League clubs have a bigger appetite for spending.
Apparently, Arsenal see Mayulu as a possible successor to Kai Havertz in midfield. He’s played up front at times this season, but he’s really a midfielder at heart. Chelsea is also pushing for him, and Manchester City, Aston Villa, and Newcastle have all tested the waters with informal approaches.
No doubt about it, Mayulu is one of the hot names ahead of the summer window. PSG have slapped a €60m (£53m) price tag on him, so they’re not letting him go cheaply. They might still try to keep him, but if he won’t sign a new deal, selling now makes sense.
So, would Arsenal be the right move for Mayulu? He’s made 28 appearances for PSG this season, scoring four and assisting five. Since coming up through their academy, he’s racked up 72 games, 11 goals, and nine assists. That kind of promise makes a Premier League move feel almost inevitable, even though he’s already at one of Europe’s biggest clubs.
If he does head to England, Arsenal will want to win the battle, but are they really the best fit? That probably depends on who leaves Arteta’s squad. Right now, Arsenal’s attacking midfield is stacked: Havertz, Eze, captain Martin Odegaard, and Ethan Nwaneri coming back from loan. Mikel Merino can play the hybrid midfield/striker role, and even Bukayo Saka has shifted more centrally at times, though he’s really best out wide.
So, there’s a logjam in attacking midfield at Arsenal. Unless Arteta sees Mayulu playing deeper, he might find more opportunities elsewhere. There could be an opening for another central midfielder, especially since Martin Zubimendi has been a hit and Christian Nørgaard hasn’t made much of an impact.
Chelsea isn’t much different. Cole Palmer is their main attacking midfielder, but that hasn’t stopped them from chasing more talent. City has Phil Foden and Rayan Cherki, but there are questions over Bernardo Silva’s future.
Honestly, staying at PSG and continuing to grow there might be the best option for Mayulu. If he decides to leave, he needs to pick a club where he’ll actually play. Chelsea could make sense if Palmer moves wide, but Newcastle might be worth a look, too. They’ve shown they’re willing to adapt roles. Nick Woltemade, for example, has dropped deeper but could move back up if someone new joins as a No. 10.
In the end, Mayulu’s next move should be about finding the right fit, not just the biggest name.
