Ligue 1: Held to a draw in Nice, Lens lets Paris consolidate its place as leader

The night took a wrong turn for Lens. At the end of a very closed match, Lens was held to a draw, on Saturday, May 2, on the occasion of the 32nd day of Ligue 1, by Nice (1-1), very solid especially in the first half. It wasn’t until the second half opened and Lens took the lead thanks to Allan Saint-Maximin (61st minute) on a corner kick. The 29-year-old forward, a former Nisséen, scored his third goal in Ligue 1, his second in two matches. But a serious mistake by the Lens full-back Saud Abdulhamid, who was shown a red card (81st minute), changed the game.

Reduced to ten men, Lens lost their lead after Ali Abdi’s goal (84th minute). Lens did not take advantage of the opportunity left by Paris Saint-Germain. After their draw (2-2) against Lorient, Paris had left the door open for the Ligue 1 title. This could have worked in favor of Lens, who with a victory could have been three points clear at the top with two matches left in the season (three for Lens and Paris, since their match was postponed to May 13, at the request of the Parisians, to better prepare for the Champions League quarter-finals).

Instead, they only earned one point, like Paris, and remain six points behind PSG, moving further away from the French championship title. With seven points ahead of Lyon (3rd) and Lille (4th), Lens is still very well positioned for the Champions League race.