PARIS — Mason Greenwood played a pivotal role in helping Marseille secure a 2-1 victory over Rennes on Saturday, scoring a goal and assisting Adrien Rabiot. This win allowed Marseille to close the gap, now just four points behind Ligue 1 leaders Paris Saint-Germain. With this triumph marking their fourth win in five league matches, Marseille has established a five-point cushion over third-placed Monaco after 17 matches played.
PSG, however, has an opportunity to regain a seven-point lead if they manage to triumph over the struggling Saint-Etienne in their match on Sunday. Greenwood’s contribution came just before halftime when he netted his 11th goal of the league season. Early in the second half, he delivered a precise cross that Rabiot expertly converted with a header.
The first half witnessed a balanced clash, with Marseille’s goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli making a critical save against Arnaud Kalimuendo, who had been awarded a penalty in the 32nd minute. The decision for the penalty followed a video review and was viewed as harsh against defender Amir Murillo, who was inadvertently judged to have handled the ball while competing for a header. Rulli, demonstrating his skill, dived to his right to save the penalty, deflecting the ball onto the post.
Kalimuendo redeemed himself just before halftime, capitalizing on a cross from Lorenz Assignon to score in the 43rd minute. However, Marseille quickly responded as Greenwood converted a cross from Murillo, and shortly after, Greenwood set up Rabiot for a well-placed header, extending their lead.
In other Ligue 1 action, Gaëtan Laborde shone for Nice, netting two goals in a 4-2 win over Reims, propelling his team up to fourth place in the standings. Laborde converted a penalty just before the break and added another goal in the second half. Nice now stands one point ahead of fifth-placed Lille and two points clear of sixth-placed Lyon, who faltered against Brest, losing 2-1.
Nice’s victory featured additional goals from forward Evann Guessand and defender Ali Abdi, while Reims found the back of the net through Japanese winger Junya Ito and 19-year-old striker Mamadou Diakhon. Earlier in the day, Lyon trailed Brest 2-0 within the first 25 minutes of play. Mahdi Camara opened the scoring for Brest and assisted Ludovic Ajorque with a clever backheel. Jordan Veretout pulled one back for Lyon during first-half stoppage time, but an equalizer by Corentin Tolisso was disallowed due to an offside call.
