Statattack Week 18: Valbuena assists OM rise
19/12/2011
Ligue 1 top assists provider Mathieu Valbuena notched an eighth of the season, Anthony Mounier scored his first league double, and Brest maintained their unbeaten home record.
Key statistic of Week 18
8: French international midfielder Mathieu Valbuena tops the assists table with eight. Valbuena's free-kick deep into stoppage time at home to Lorient was met by Benoit Cheyrou's head for a dramatic winner and a 2-1 scoreline. Seven of Valbuena's assists have come from set pieces, a ratio of 87.5%. All of the goals scored from Valbuena assists have been headers. Earlier in the match Valbuena had equalised with his third league goal of the season.
Team Performances
2nd: Ajaccio's 1-0 home win over Rennes was their second victory of the season and came after a run of 12 matches without a win. Both three-pointers have been obtained at the Stade François Coty. The game also saw Ajaccio, with Guillermo Ochoa in goal, keep a clean sheet for the first time this season.
72%: Nancy were 2-1 winners at Caen and have bagged 72% of their points between Weeks 11 and 18., that's 13 of their 18 points. Over those eight games the 15th-placed club have the eighth best record in the league.
9: Along with Rennes, Brest are the only club with an unbeaten home record. A 1-0 win over Auxerre made it nine games undefeated at the Stade Francis le Blé (3 wins, 6 draws). Brest have won three of their last four home fixtures.
Individual Performances
1st: Anthony Mounier of Nice scored his first Ligue 1 double, netting both goals in a 2-0 home win over Valenciennes. Mounier only came on in the 59th minute and his double salvo put him level woth Eric Mouloungui and Fabian Monzon at the top of the club scoring chart with four goals.
2nd: Max-Alain Gradel scored his second Les Verts goal in a 2-1 win at Dijon to mark his seventh start and his 13th appearance overall. The Ivorian international has scored twice and added two assists in the last eight games.
2: Ajaccio's Fousseni Diawara celebrated his fifth straight Ligue 1 start with a second Ligue 1 goal of the season. It was Diawara's reward for a busy match. He touched the ball 63 times, putting him second in Ajaccio's list of most active ball players.