Paris (AFP)
Randall Kolo-Mwani led his team, Paris Saint-Germain, the “defending champion,” to a difficult victory over its guest, Nantes, 2-1, in the fifteenth round of the French Football League.
Kolo Mwani saved the capital team from the draw trap by scoring the winning goal in the 83rd minute, after Bradley Barkola opened the scoring (41), and Egyptian international Mostafa Mohamed equalized (55).
Saint-Germain increased its lead in the Ligue 1 standings with 36 points, six points ahead of second-placed Monaco, and seven ahead of Nice, which faces Reims on Sunday.
Saint-Germain’s victory comes ahead of its upcoming confrontation with Germany’s Borussia Dortmund, from which it aims to qualify for the Champions League knockout rounds from the “Group of Death”, which also includes Italian Milan and England’s Newcastle.
Barkola opened the scoring, after exchanging passes with his Portuguese colleague Vitinha, before making his way at high speed on the left side towards the opponent’s penalty area, to shoot a curved ball into the right corner (41).
Nantes captain Mohamed equalized the score, after he headed the ball, following a perfect cross pass from Florent Mollet (55), raising his score to six goals, in third place on the scorers list, shared with Monaco striker Wissam Ben Yedder.
In light of Saint-Germain’s struggle to make a difference, the score remained tied until the 85th minute, when Kolo Mwani was able to score against his former team, following a free kick executed by Spanish international Marco Asensio, and Lucas Hernandez followed it up with a header, but it rebounded from goalkeeper Alban Lafont, and was prepared for Kolo. Mwani, who was in the right place, followed it into the goal “85”.
In a second match, deficient Monaco returned with a valuable victory at the home of its host Rennes, after defeating them 2-1 and clinching second place.
Brazilian Fan Anderson (51) and Youssef Fofana (85) scored the goals of the emirate team, which played with ten players from the 75th minute, after the scorer of his first goal was expelled for receiving a second warning, before Benjamin Borrego reduced the score for Rennes (90 with a penalty kick).
Monaco advanced to second place with 30 points, one point ahead of Nice, which faces Reims on Sunday, and 6 points behind leaders Saint-Germain.
Monaco recently suffered a series of disappointing results, as it tied against Le Havre 0-0 in the twelfth stage, then lost to Saint-Germain 2-5 in the thirteenth stage, and moved away somewhat from the competition, before regaining its momentum by defeating Montpellier 2. -0 in the last stage.
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