Ligue 1: Marseille 2 Lyon 2

Marseille saw their momentum in Ligue 1 halted as Lyon recovered from a two-goal deficit to earn a 2-2 draw at the Stade Velodrome.

Michel Bastos had said in the build-up to the match that a draw would be a good result for Lyon but that looked barely possible when Marseille raced into a 2-0 lead, with Benoit Cheyrou and Brandao reacting well in the box to score.

Lyon responded commendably, with Bafetimbi Gomis converting a corner and Souleymane Diawara putting through his own net.

Both defences looked very shaky from the early moments of the game, although it was the visitors who did much of the early pressing against a team shorn of the likes of Andre Ayew and Mathieu Valbuena.

But it was Lyon’s rearguard that buckled under the first sign of pressure, with Aly Cissokho failing to clear a Brandao flick, allowing Cheyrou to slot home.

Lyon’s defence was then undone by a neat move from the home side. Morgan Amalfitano was the protagonist, taking his time to deliver neatly to the back post, where Brandao finished with a composed side-foot finish.

In a mature manner, Lyon set about getting themselves back into the game, having previously pierced the home defence dangerously without being able to score.

Marseille’s sloppy defending presented Gomis with a goal, as the striker was given plenty of room to score from close range after Jimmy Briand had flicked on a Kim Kallstrom corner at the near post.

Just before the break, Lyon equalised to make it 2-2. Aly Cissokho went on a characteristically swashbuckling run down the left, though he would not have expected to see his mediocre low cross clumsily slashed into the goal by opponent Diawara.

Marseille took a greater hold of the game in the second period, forcing Lloris into action on several occasions.

The France international was never truly stretched though, with a well-placed shot from Loic Remy drawing the best block from the Nice-born goalkeeper.

The draw means Lyon retain their one-point advantage over Marseille, but trail leaders Paris Saint-Germain by 10 points.

Heavy snow in France caused the postponement of two other scheduled matches, between Caen and Auxerre and Sochaux and Lille.