Rabiot stars as Marseille beats Toulouse to reclaim second spot in Ligue 1

PARIS (AP) — Adrien Rabiot scored with a volley and created another goal as Marseille beat Toulouse 3-2 to reclaim second place in Ligue 1 on Sunday.

Marseille, which had lost its last three games, saw bitter rival Paris Saint-Germain clinch a record-extending 13th title on Saturday with six rounds remaining.

A much-needed win put Marseille two points ahead of Monaco in third place and three points in front of Strasbourg in fourth in the race for a Champions League spot next season.

Resurgent Lyon is one point behind Strasbourg in fifth place, with the top three qualifying automatically and the team in the fourth spot entering qualifying.

Marseille coach Roberto De Zerbi had grown increasingly frustrated with his side’s inconsistency and there were tensions leading up to this game.

“The coach was angry and he tried to remotivate us, that’s normal, that’s his role,” Rabiot told match broadcaster DAZN. “No one abandoned ship. On the contrary, we trained with even more enthusiasm, and tonight we gave the right answer.”

Midway through the first half, Rabiot broke down the left and sent a cross to the back post, where Gabriel Suazo mis-kicked the ball for a clumsy own-goal.

Marseille conceded a soft goal shortly after, with the ball hitting Toulouse striker Frank Magri’s shoulder as he attempted a header and sailing over goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli.

Mason Greenwood put the home side back in front with a brilliant dipping shot from the right edge of the penalty area in the 57th minute for his 16th league goal of the season. Only PSG forward Ousmane Dembélé has more with 21.

Rabiot swiveled neatly to make it 3-1 in the 64th, but poor defending gave Toulouse hope when captain Vincent Sierro turned in a cross from the right.

Marseille held on and there was relief on the bench with De Zerbi hugged by his staff.

Earlier, Liam Rosenior’s Strasbourg won 1-0 at struggling Reims, which dropped into 16th place and the relegation-promotion playoff spot.

Rosenior’s rise

It has been a remarkable first season for Rosenior as Strasbourg coach. The 40-year-old Englishman had only two weeks of pre-season to work with his squad.

Right back Ismaël Doukouré put Strasbourg ahead in the fourth minute when he was left unmarked on a corner.

Each side had a player sent off near the end as tempers frayed.

Reims president outraged by decisions

Reims president Jean-Pierre Caillot was outraged by two decisions that went against his team and blasted referee Clément Turpin and the match officials.

Television replays showed a handball by defender Mamadou Sarr in the first half just as Junya Ito scored for Reims. But the goal was then ruled out for handball against Ito, even though he did not appear to touch the ball.

Then, deep into stoppage time, Ito was knocked to the ground by a Strasbourg player but no penalty was given.

“They’re going to explain to us again that we have the best referees in the world. VAR is useless, except to cost money,” Caillot told match broadcaster DAZN. “Mr. Turpin’s refereeing today was scandalous. Things like this are happening every week, but they keep telling us that we have the best referees in the world.”

Montpellier’s fall

Rock-bottom Montpellier fell further toward relegation after losing 2-0 at home to Le Havre, which boosted its own survival chances by climbing out of the relegation zone.

First-half goals from midfielders Yassine Kechta and Abdoulaye Touré put Le Havre in charge.

Montpellier has only 15 points and trails next-to-last Saint-Etienne by eight.

Earlier Sunday, Saint-Etienne lost 1-0 at ninth-placed Lens, which scored in the 75th through midfielder Goduine Koyalipou.

Brazilian defender Jubal scored a late winner as midtable Auxerre won 1-0 at Rennes. ___

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

By JEROME PUGMIRE
AP Sports Writer