France round-up: Lyon keep hopes alive
Sunday, March 2, 2003
Article summary
Olympique Lyonnais climbed up to third in the Ligue 1 table with a a 2-1 victory at AJ Auxerre.
Article body
Olympique Lyonnais kept their hopes alive of retaining their French first division title with a convincing 2-1 victory at AJ Auxerre on Sunday.
Govou on target
The French champions took an early lead through Sidney Govou after a counter-attack in the fifth minute and never looked in serious danger. Fellow striker Pegguy Luyindula made it two in the 36th minute against the run of play as Auxerre were fighting back to avoid their third home defeat in succession.
Cissé consolation
The Burgundy team tried hard in the second half by pairing Djibril Cissé and Zimbabwean Benjamin Mwaruwari up front, but Lyon goalkeeper Grégory Coupet was in great form. There was nothing Coupet could do, however, when Cissé scored a consolation goal two minutes into injury time.
Important win
The match was important for both teams, who were still in contention for top places, but Auxerre, beaten by FC Nantes Atlantique in the league and Liverpool FC in the UEFA Cup in their previous two homes games, have now lost precious ground. Lyon, by contrast, are back in third place in the standings on 48 points, four behind joint-leaders AS Monaco FC and Olympique de Marseille.
