RTL Today – Ligue 1, FC Metz
If relegation to Ligue 2 will be difficult to avoid, FC Metz offered themselves a nice gift, during the 36th day of Ligue 1, by beating Lyonnais who still hoped to hang on to Europe.
Is this the last gasp of a wounded animal? Almost doomed to drop in Ligue 2, FC Metz offered a nice success a priori for the honor against a Lyon which it deprives of the European Cup next season.
Close to winning last week in Montpellier, Frédéric Antonetti’s men were this time rewarded for their good performance of the day. The fifth victory of the season only, validated with young people (Lacroix, Niakaté, Mikelbrencis in defense), a Lamkel Zé landed from Russia last April, author against Lyon of his second but in the garnet jersey, and an effective Boulaya after his coming into play, and that we have seen too little this season…
BOULAYA’S LIGHTNING
Previously, it was Pajot who allowed Metz to lead on Sunday at the very beginning of the afternoon. The midfielder, at the end of his contract this summer, appeared on a corner from De Préville, left side, to place his flat foot and leave no chance for Lopes, the Lyon goalkeeper (1-0, 27th). A minute earlier, this same Pajot but precisely on this same Lopes.
About ten minutes later, perfectly launched in depth by Sarr, Lamkel Zé sowed Gusto and Boateng before stealing his ball to double the bet (2-0, 39th).
The joy of the Messins was tarnished just before half-time with the reduction of the score of Dembélé, the Lyon striker forgotten on the left side, who opened his foot perfectly to deceive Caillard. A goal disallowed for offside at first, before being validated by the VAR (2-1, 43rd).
After the break, while the Lyon team was heavily overhauled (four changes), Metz understood the shock, De Préville even presented Lopes’ post on a free kick following a foul by Thiago Mendes, sent off directly (70th).
Dembélé’s double, five minutes from the end of the game, then plunged the Garnets into very bad recent memories. Instantly, the Metz goalkeeper could only deflect the striker’s shot, who died in the small left net (2-2, 85th).
It was without counting on Boulaya, whose last but dated back to last December, against Lorient (4-1), when there was not yet fire in the house. The Algerian midfielder scored a third but it was only due to his talent, a dry shot from the left, from the penalty area, which went to lodge under the crossbar of Lopes (3-2, 90th).
“It brings a little happiness in this delicate season, reacted Boulaya, at the microphone of Prime Video. I think this victory is deserved. We knew we had no choice. We mustn’t make any more mistakes, we must try to finish the season well and we’ll see what happens…”
“Regrets, we’re going to have some. It’s our season”, affirmed for his part Frédéric Antonetti, the coach of Metz. “We did not beat a great Lyon, which was a little behind but which remains a great team. They and we missed our season. We had our place in L1, I believed in it until the end but I don’t even want to talk about it anymore.”
There are two games left before the end of the season: against Angers in a week, and at the Parc des Princes against Paris-SG, in two weeks.