Dijon stun Lyon, Monaco salvage one point in Ligue 1

Source: Xinhua| 2019-04-07 08:46:00|Editor: Yurou
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PARIS, April 6 (Xinhua) -- Dijon harvested a much-needed win in their fight against relegation after beating third-placed Lyon 3-1, while Monaco took on Stevan Jovetic's stoppage-time goal to manage a 1-1 draw at Guingamp in Ligue 1 on Saturday.

The home defeat to Dijon cast a cloud on Lyon's automatic qualification for next season's Champions League. They trail second-ranked Lille by four points with one more match played.

A prolific span of opening seven minutes saw three goals from both sides. It even took less than one minute for Lyon to move ahead at their stadium, as Maxwel Cornet's cross was sweetly sidefooted home by Martin Terrier.

However, Dijon, who sat at the bottom of the table prior to Saturday's matches, only used six minutes to turn things around in their favor.

After playing one-two with Julio Tavares, Wesley Said earned the chance of getting even for Dijon by shooting past goalkeeper Anthony Lopes in the third minute. Said saw his shot ricochet off Marcelo and beat Lopes again four minutes later.

Lopes' counterpart Runar Alex Runarsson consecutively made high-quality saves on Marcelo's header and Cornet's effort to keep his team ahead into the halftime.

Runarsson also brilliantly blocked a Moussa Dembele header around the hour mark. On the other side, Lyon agonizingly conceded an own goal from another defender Rafael shortly afterwards.

Dijon climb to 18th, the relegation playoff spot after the campaign, with seven matches left to play.

Felix Eboa Eboa finished a powerful header on Pedro Rebocho's corner beyond Monaco goalkeeper Danijel Subasic in the 23rd minute.

Monaco were well on track to their second straight loss, but succeeded in finding an equalizer by Jovetic from close range following a scramble inside the box deep into stoppage time.

Monaco sit 16th, level on points with Amiens behind them, but the two teams have established a seven-point cushion over Dijon. Guingamp return to the bottom, one point adrift of Dijon.

Saint-Etienne failed to capitalize on Lyon's slump to cut the deficit. Actually they rather needed a late goal from Remy Cabella for a 2-2 draw at Amiens. Saint-Etienne trail Lyon by six points.

Also on Saturday, Angers and Rennes shared points with a 3-3 tie. Nimes beat Caen 2-0, seeing the latter slip to second from the bottom.

Paris Saint-Germain could effectively win their sixth league title in seven seasons on Sunday, if they beat Strasbourg at home and Lille, 20 points behind them, failed to triumph at Reims.

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