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Struggling Nantes deepen Marseille's woes in Ligue 1 / Photo: © AFP
Struggling Nantes deepen Marseille's woes in Ligue 1
Marseille's troubled season in Ligue 1 continued with a comprehensive 3-0 defeat away to Nantes on Saturday which is a further blow to their prospects of Champions League qualification but gives their opponents' renewed hope of avoiding relegation.
Ignatius Ganago, Remy Cabella and Matthis Abline all scored in the space of nine minutes early in the second half at the Stade de la Beaujoire as Nantes claimed a first win in nine matches and just a fifth victory all season -- but their second against Marseille.
Eight-time champions Nantes remain in the automatic relegation places with two games left but are now just two points behind Auxerre in the play-off spot -- their rivals play Angers on Sunday and a slip-up by them would make it all to play for in the remaining matches.
Marseille, meanwhile, are lurching into full-blown crisis again in a turbulent campaign, with Habib Beye's side now on a run of four defeats in their last six outings which leaves them in sixth place.
They are four points away from a Champions League qualifying berth with only two games left to play, and at this rate are running the risk of not making it into any European competition at all next season.
OM will slip to seventh if Monaco win at relegation certainties Metz later, while Paris Saint-Germain host Lorient and Nice play Lens in Saturday's other Ligue 1 fixtures.
PSG face Lorient in between the two legs of their Champions League semi-final against Bayern Munich. Luis Enrique's team beat the Germans 5-4 at home last Tuesday and will be on the road for the return on Wednesday.
The reigning French and European champions started the day six points clear at the top of Ligue 1 from Lens with four games still to play.
Y. Rousseau--BTZ
