Lyon move second in Ligue 1, Montpellier win thriller

Paris (AFP) – Zimbabwe striker Tino Kadewere scored a late winner as Lyon beat Angers 1-0 to move second in Ligue 1, just four points behind leaders Paris Saint-Germain.

Montpellier beat Strasbourg 4-3 in a dramatic match earlier in the day and sit joint-third with Monaco, behind Lyon on goal difference.

Defending champions PSG blew a two-goal lead to lose 3-2 at Monaco on Friday and hand the chasing pack the chance to close the gap.

Lyon, semi-finalists in last season’s Champions League, took advantage, but needed an 80th-minute winner from Kadewere.

The 24-year-old, a close-season arrival from second-tier outfit Le Havre, has scored four Ligue 1 goals this term.

Montpellier have an identical record and goal difference to Monaco, although fifth-placed Lille could leapfrog the pair and Lyon and move two points behind PSG if they beat Lorient later on Sunday.

Montpellier, the 2012 champions, led 2-0 through early goals from Pedro Mendes and Andy Delort, but Strasbourg hit back with a brace of penalties from Kenny Lala and Habib Diallo.

Former Wigan Athletic striker Delort restored the hosts’ advantage, and although Ludovic Ajorque levelled on the stroke of half-time, Gaetan Laborde had the final say midway through the second period.

Sixth-placed Marseille are only six points off the pace with two games in hand.