Following the shock 2-0 defeat at the hands of Reims, PSG have won three Ligue 1 games in a row against Bordeaux, Angers, and now Nice, whom they defeated 4-1 on Friday. Their star player, Angel Di Maria, has to settle for second best in the rankings, however, as Dijon goalkeeper Alfred Gomis was magnificent as his side held Lyon to a 0-0 stalemate.
Both Lyon and Dijon are desperate for points, but had to settle for one each after the 0-0 draw at the weekend. The home side were left extremely frustrated as they fired no less than 24 shots on goal, with Gomis saving the 10 which were actually on target. The pick(s) of the bunch came via a brilliant double save to deny Maxwell Cornet's volley and then, a second later, a header from Jeff Reine-Adelaide. He also denied Moussa Dembele with a couple of close-range stops, too.
With the likes of Neymar and Kylian Mbappe having been out injured at various points so far this season, Di Maria has stepped up to be their main man in the absence of his team-mates. He was PSG's outstanding performer again against Nice as he scored two, with the first coming after a superb run in behind to beat the offside trap before finishing with a curled strike into the corner. His seccond, however, was ridiculous. After running to near enough right on the line at a tight angle, he looped a lob over the hapless keeper into the side-netting. He provided plenty of ammunition, too, firing 16 crosses into the box during the game.
| FL1 | Oct 20, 2019 | W | |
Monaco made potentially vital ground between themselves and the relegation zone thanks to a narrow 3-2 at home versus Rennes. Ben Yedder was key to the win as he scored the opener and the winner. His first came three minutes in as he held his position at the back post to send a strike over the line from a tight angle, while the match winner was in the last minute; a superb swiveled strike into the near corner. He also made 23 passes into the final third, and won 100% of his attempted tackles.
While his team-mates were trying and missing with 24 strikes on goal, Marcelo made sure everything was solid at the back to allow the forwards to try and affect things. The big Brazilian was dominant, winning 6/7 duels, 4/4 tackles, and 2/3 aerial duels. He also won possession back with 10 ball recoveries and two interceptions, and had more touches than anyone else in the round of fixtures apart from team-mate Kenny Tete.
| FL1 | Oct 20, 2019 | W | |
While Ben Yedder will grab the headlines with his match-winning goals, Slimani's contribution was a major factor in Monaco's win too as he scored himself and also set-up the opener for the Frenchman with a precise cross. For his own goal, which got the home side back into the game by making it 2-2, he received a pass from Cesc Fabregas before running through to display composure to jink round the keeper to slot home. He won his fair share of duels both on the ground and in the air, too, so was a real handful for Rennes.
HONOURABLE MENTIONS
Saint-Etienne moved into the top half of the table after a 1-0 win away at Bordeaux, with Stephane Ruffier (8.2) successfully keeping a clean sheet with seven saves in between the posts.
ROUND TO FORGET
Lille lost ground in the race to get into the top four after losing 2-1 away at Toulouse, with Jeremy Pied (4) being detrimental to his side's chances. He only attempted two tackles the entire game (one of which he lost), while he gave away a penalty in the second half with a handball.
