Théo Le Bris scored a late winner as FC Lorient beat LOSC Lille 2-1 at the Stade du Moustoir on Sunday to claim a fifth successive victory, despite playing most of the second half down to 10 men.
FC Lorient 2-1 LOSC Lille
THE MATCH
Lorient went ahead inside the opening 10 minutes as Lille goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier blocked a cross by Stéphane Diarra only for the ball to strike Bafodé Diakité and ricochet into the net for an own goal.
Lille might have equalised before the interval, with Adam Ounas striking a post direct from a corner in the 38th minute. They were then given a boost in the second half, when Lorient were reduced to 10 men just after the hour mark as Dango Ouattara – so impressive this season – was shown a second yellow card for a foul on Ounas (62’).
The visitors quickly made the most of their extra man. First David struck the bar (68’), and then the Canadian got the equaliser with 12 minutes remaining. Ounas was involved initially before playing in Jonathan Bamba who squared for David to finish into an empty net.
Yet remarkably the 10 men grabbed the winning goal with three minutes left, and it came in style too. Substitute Le Bris collected a crossfield pass from Gédéon Kalulu, burst away from Akim Zedadka and broke into the box from the left before finishing past Chevalier to make it 2-1.
It is Lorient’s fifth consecutive victory as they remain clear in third place, their sensational start to the season continuing. Lille are nine points behind the Bretons already, as their inconsistent beginning to life under new coach Paulo Fonseca goes on.
THE PLAYER: Théo Le Bris
The nephew of new coach Régis Le Bris, the attacking midfielder came off the bench to score the winning goal just a day after celebrating his 20th birthday.
THE STAT: 5
Five straight wins equals Lorient’s best ever run in the top flight. They also won five games on the bounce between November and December 2013.
