Paris Saint-Germain and LOSC Lille played out a goalless draw in the Round 16 top-of-the-table encounter leaving Olympique Lyonnais the big winners of the penultimate clutch of Ligue 1 Uber Eats fixtures for 2020.
Lille and PSG came into the weekend in first and second place in the table, separated by just a single point, and they were unable to break down each other in a gripping encounter at the Stade Pierre Mauroy. "We made a lot of passes, we played very very simply, very quickly. We made Lille run," said PSG boss Thomas Tuchel. "We lacked a little luck, a little precision. I can accept a draw after a performance like that." "If you can't win, you have to know how not to lose," said Lille captain Jose Fonte, whose side have lost just a single game all season. "We have to recover well now for Montpellier [on Wednesday] to continue our unbeaten run."
WATCH: Lille and PSG go head-to-head at the Stade Pierre Mauroy
That unbeaten streak is now six games for Lille, but they find themselves only ahead of Olympique Lyonnais on goal difference -- and a single goal at that -- after OL stretched their own run without defeat to an impressive 13 matches, their best such series since the 2010/11 season. "We understand each other when we're together on the pitch," said Tino Kadewere, who found the net along with Memphis Depay, Karl Toko Ekambi and Houssem Aouar in a 4-1 win at OGC Nice. "We've played a lot of very good games, but this is only the start of the season. We need to work more to conclude the Championship with a lot of points and reach the Champions League again. I'm happy, I'm playing with very good teammates, in a very good team. We'll continue like this."
That victory leaves Rudi Garcia's men a point clear of PSG, who are now third, while there is a four-point gap back to fourth-placed Olympique de Marseille, who needed a Florian Thauvin goal to secure a point in an underwhelming 1-1 home draw with Stade de Reims on Saturday. OM do, however, have two games in hand on the three teams ahead of them and directly behind them.
Stade Rennais FC registered a third victory in a week as they won 3-0 at Breton rivals FC Lorient to move fifth, though the match was overshadowed by the death of a 38-year-old member of the groundstaff caused by on-pitch lighting collapsing on him shortly after the final whistle.
Montpellier Hérault SC were overtaken by Rennes after their 2-2 draw at Stade Brestois 29, a point salvaged in Brittany thanks to Andy Delort's stunning 82nd-minute equaliser. Kevin Volland's goal for AS Monaco at Dijon FCO was equally eye-catching — the Germany international forward exchanging passes sharply with Wissam ben Yedder before crisply netting a sixth league goal of the season.
WATCH: The best goals of Round 16
That win — Monaco's first after three successive defeats — lifts them above RC Lens, who won in the principality in Round 15, after the northerners were beaten 2-0 by FC Metz. FC Girondins de Bordeaux kept a ninth clean sheet of the campaign — more than any other team in Europe's top five leagues — as they won 2-0 at RC Strasbourg Alsace thanks to goals from Brazilian duo Pablo and Otavio.
Charles Traoré's fluke goal four minutes into added time earned FC Nantes a point at home to Angers SCO, while AS Saint-Etienne continue to claw their way back to stability following that seven-match losing streak earlier in the season as they extended their unbeaten run to five with a 2-2 draw at home to Nîmes Olympique.
