Lille moves seven points clear as Rennes stumbles - 7M sport

Lille moves seven points clear as Rennes stumbles



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Posted Sunday, April 03, 2011 by YAHOO Sport

PARIS (AP)—Senegal forward Moussa Sow scored his league-leading 20th goal of the season as French leader Lille coasted to a 3-1 home win over Caen, extending its lead to seven points after Rennes drew 0-0 with Auxerre on Saturday.

Cameroon defender Aurelien Chedjou and Belgium playmaker Eden Hazard got Lille’s other goals for Rudi Garcia’s side, which was closing in on its first league title since 1954 with nine matches remaining.

Second-place Marseille was level on points with third-place Rennes, but can cut Lille’s gap to four points if it wins at struggling Lens on Sunday.

“We’re sticking to our way of playing, we play our own way,” Garcia said. “We will watch the results of the two (matches involving Marseille and Lyon) on Sunday. We’ll be taking it easy.”

Sixth-place Montpellier won 1-0 at Toulouse in the late match thanks to Senegal forward Souleymane Camara’s second-half goal.

Chedjou put Lille ahead in the 30th minute with a powerful header from Yohan Cabaye’s corner.

Lille almost doubled the lead soon after when Sow ran onto Hazard’s pass and lobbed goalkeeper Thomas Bosmel, only for his shot to hit the crossbar.

Hazard pounced on a loose ball to finish from 10 meters (yards) out in the 61st after Caen defender Jeremy Sorbon blocked Mathieu Debuchy’s long shot. Sow made it 3-0 in the 73rd when he swept in Ivory Coast forward Gervinho’s pass from the right.

“We have ambition, but it would put extra pressure on us to talk about (the title),” Chedjou said. “Our secret is that we don’t put ourselves under pressure. We don’t get carried away. When we start a match, it’s to enjoy ourselves.”

Defender Romain Inez set up Youssef El-Arabi for a late consolation, giving the Morocco striker his 15th league goal of the season.

In other matches, it was: Arles-Avignon 0, Monaco 2; Nancy 0, Bordeaux 0; Paris Saint-Germain 0, Lorient 0, and Sochaux 2, Brest 1.

PSG’s home draw at Parc des Princes meant it remained in fifth place, 12 points behind Lille, and was dropping crucial points in the race to qualify for next season’s Champions League.

Nigerian forward Ideye Brown grabbed an injury-time winner for Sochaux, taking his league tally to 11.

Ryad Boudebouz put Sochaux ahead from the penalty spot after seven minutes, and Bruno Grougi replied from the spot in the 62nd.

Arles-Avignon had Gregory Lorenzi sent off after just two minutes for yanking Park Chu-young’s shirt as he ran through on goal, and Monaco took advantage of the extra man when Benjamin Moukandjo put the visitors ahead in the 29th.

Mathieu Coutadeur’s shot was saved two-fisted by goalkeeper Vincent Plante, but the ball fell invitingly to Moukandjo and he finished confidently.

Park wrapped up the win midway through the second half with his 10th goal of the league campaign.

In Sunday’s other matches, Nice hosts fourth-place Lyon and Saint-Etienne faces Valenciennes.



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