Marseille held by Strasbourg in French league, Saint-Etienne and Nantes remain stuck near bottom

PARIS (AP) — Second-placed Marseille lost further ground on leader Paris Saint-Germain by drawing 1-1 with Strasbourg in the French league on Sunday.

Facing a well-organized and lively visiting side, Marseille struggled to develop its attacking moves in the first half and relied on a penalty converted by Mason Greenwood after the interval to secure a point.

Marseille has a five-point lead over third-place Lille in the race for Champions League spots. It’s now lagging nine points behind PSG, which won 2-1 at Lens on Saturday ahead of a crucial Champions League match against Manchester City on Wednesday.

Emanuel Emegha made the most of Marseille’s passivity to put the visitors in front in the 23rd minute. The Dutch forward was set up by the unmarked Andrey Santos in the back of the high defensive line and rushed toward goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli, finishing off the move with a chipped finish.

Strasbourg’s intense press posed many problems for the hosts. Marseille played better in the second half and was rewarded by a penalty in the 66th minute when Robinio Vaz was fouled. Greenwood converted with a low shot past Djordje Petrovic, who had picked the right side but could not block the shot.

Both teams had their chances in the second half, and Strasbourg wasted the best of them with 20 minutes left after Marseille defenders were once again surprised by a through ball. Sebastian Nanasi found Emegha, who shot past Rulli but his strike hit the post.

Saint-Etienne and Nantes stuck near the bottom

Both Saint-Etienne and Nantes are part of French soccer aristocracy, having respectively won 10 and and eight league titles. But their past glory has long vanished. This season, they have each mustered 17 points from 18 matches and are both in danger of being demoted.

Saint-Etienne sits 16th in the 18-team standings — the relegation playoff spot — just behind Nantes which has a better goal difference.

Nantes thought that it would bring back three crucial points from its trip to Stade Geoffroy Guichard until the 86th minute, when substitute forward Augustine Boakye snatched a late equalizer for the hosts with a long-range curled strike.

Moses Simon had opened the scoring for Nantes in the 14th minute.

A nightmarish start leads to a loss

Auxerre was in control against Angers when Sinaly Diomandé beat his own goalkeeper with a powerful header as he tried to clear a corner in the 18th minute.

Four minutes later, his teammate Gabriel Osho was sent off for a foul on Estéban Lepaul and Auxerre found itself reduced to 10 men for more than an hour.

After such a poor start, Auxerre would have needed a miracle to recover. It did not happen and Angers won 2-0 after Lepaul scored soon after the interval.

The result lifted Angers level on points with Auxerre, with both clubs lagging 24 points behind PSG.

Also, Reims and Le Havre drew 1-1.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer