Paris (AFP) – Germany striker Kevin Volland scored his sixth Ligue 1 goal as Monaco battled to a 1-0 win at bottom club Dijon on Sunday to snap a three-match losing streak.
Successive defeats by Lille, Marseille and Lens had seen Monaco slip nine points behind previous leaders Lille heading into the weekend.
Their win on Sunday moved the seventh-placed principality club within seven points of current leaders Lyon, although Lille and Paris Saint-Germain will both be eyeing top spot when they meet later in the day.
Former Bayer Leverkusen forward Volland slotted in the only goal on 15 minutes, with both sides seeing later efforts ruled out by VAR.
“After four straight wins and then three defeats on the bounce, the most important thing was to win,” said coach Niko Kovac.
“It was not the best Monaco but we showed lots of character and that’s the best way to move forward.”
Rennes are two points ahead Monaco in fifth after strolling to a 3-0 win at Lorient, who sit second-from-bottom after their 11th defeat of the season.
Damien Da Silva opened the scoring with a deflected close-range effort midway through the first half, and Benjamin Bourigeaud doubled the away side’s lead with a fine first-time strike with 20 minutes remaining.
Martin Terrier completed the scoring six minutes later when he cut in from the left before curling home past Paul Nardi.
Rennes are level with Marseille on 28 points, five behind Lyon, although they have played two games more than the team from the south coast.
One point ahead of Lorient in 18th place are Nimes, who came away from Saint-Etienne with a 2-2 draw.
Elsewhere, Montpellier missed the chance to move into fourth as they were held to a 2-2 draw at Brest.
