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Ligue 1 Review: Marseille survive late drama, PSG bounce back

SoccerNews in Ligue 1 19 Jan 2015

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Marseille survived a late penalty and red card to defeat Guingamp 2-1 on Sunday, staying in touch with Ligue 1 pacesetters Lyon.

A late flurry saw Marseille keep pace with Ligue 1 leaders Lyon with a 2-1 win over Guingamp, while Paris Saint-Germain came from behind to defeat Evian 4-2 on Sunday.

In a dramatic finale at Marseille’s Stade Velodrome, the home side struck twice in the space of five minutes but a penalty in stoppage time, which saw Rod Fanni sent off for the hosts, saw Guingamp hit back.

But Marcelo Bielsa’s team held on at home, ensuring they bounced back from defeats in the Coupe de France and Ligue 1 over the past fortnight.

Marseille (44 points) remain a point behind Lyon following the weekend’s action, with PSG (41) completing the top three after Saint-Etienne (40) drew on Sunday.

It took Marseille 83 minutes to open the scoring against Guingamp with Mario Lemina nodding the ball into the net after the visiting goalkeeper failed to hold onto Benjamin Mendy’s volley.

Andre-Pierre Gignac doubled Marseille’s advantage in the 89th minute with a glancing header from Dimitri Payet’s free-kick but a poor back pass from Baptiste Aloe gave Guingamp a lifeline in second-half injury time.

Aloe missed Fanni on the edge of the area, allowing Claudio Beauvue to burst onto the loose ball.

Fanni scrambled back but his tackle was late, clipping Beauvue in the box, which resulted in a red card and a penalty.

Beauvue scored from the spot with a well-taken penalty but Marseille held on for their 14th win of the season.

In the French capital, PSG started their clash with Evian on a three-game winless streak in Ligue 1 and the home fans must have feared the worst when Salvatore Sirigu failed to keep out Cedric Barbosa’s half-volley from the edge of the box in the 14th minute.

But David Luiz’s header and Marco Verrati’s opportunistic strike put the hosts in front by half-time, only for Evian to draw level thanks to Gregory van der Wiel’s own goal just after the hour mark.

Goals to Javier Pastore and Edinson Cavani clinched victory for PSG, however, with the Uruguayan striker scoring on his return to Laurent Blanc’s squad.

Cavani and Ezequiel Lavezzi were recalled after missing the past three games, having been omitted for missing a mid-season training camp.

In Sunday’s other Ligue 1 fixture, Rennes held Saint-Etienne to a scoreless draw.

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