PARIS — Lille maintained its impressive streak by extending their unbeaten run to 18 matches after playing to a 1-1 draw against struggling Nantes at home in Ligue 1 on Saturday.

The team holds onto fourth place, remaining two points behind both Monaco and Marseille, the latter set to compete on Sunday.

In the Nantes goal, new addition Anthony Lopes made his debut after a long tenure with Lyon, where he had nearly 500 appearances.

Lopes saw his goal breached in the 41st minute when defender Gabriel Gudmundsson capitalized on a rebound. The play unfolded as winger Remy Cabella’s curling shot hit the crossbar, allowing Gudmundsson to volley it home.

Nantes, now positioned in 15th place, found an equalizer in the 70th minute through a penalty converted by emerging forward Matthis Abline.

Meanwhile, Lyon climbed to fifth position following a narrow 1-0 victory against bottom-ranked Montpellier, which resulted from an unfortunate stoppage-time own goal by Khalil Fayad amid a scramble in the penalty area.

Montpellier had their share of misfortune, with midfielder Jordan Ferri hitting the post early on during the match against his former club. He later thought he had scored when he netted in the second half, but this goal was disallowed after a video review. Lyon’s goalkeeper Lucas Perri also made a significant save by tipping Wahbi Khazri’s free kick over the bar in the closing moments of the match.

Earlier in the day, Augustine Boakye made headlines by scoring his first goals for Saint-Etienne, leading the team to a 3-1 triumph over Reims in his debut game under new Norwegian head coach Eirik Horneland.

Boakye, hailing from Ghana, netted two goals in the second half, helping Saint-Etienne break a three-game losing streak and climb to 14th place. Horneland stepped in to replace Olivier Dall’Oglio, who was relieved of his duties on December 14.

In the match, Japan’s Keito Nakamura initially put Reims ahead nearing halftime with his seventh goal of the season. However, Saint-Etienne’s Lucas Stassin provided a late cushion, securing the victory.

Meanwhile, unbeaten league leader Paris Saint-Germain was not in action this weekend, as they prepare to face Monaco in the Champions Trophy on Sunday.