Ligue 1 matchday 6: Monaco stay top after letting a 2–0 lead go, Lens end Lyon's unbeaten start

Monaco are still top of Ligue 1, but only by a point. They led Toulouse 2–0 at half-time on Saturday and drew 2–2, and Lille and Rennes both won to move level on 13 behind them. Lyon and Paris FC, the other unbeaten sides before the round, both lost, Lyon 2–1 at Lens on Friday, so Monaco are the only club without a defeat. Marseille won 2–0 at Troyes to end a run of four league defeats. Nine matches brought 29 goals and three red cards: seven home wins, one away win and one draw.

Friday

Lens 2–1 Lyon went to Lens. Florian Sotoca scored on 36 and Matthieu Udol on 76, both from Florian Thauvin's passes, and Udol was sent off for a serious foul on 84. Khalis Merah pulled one back for Lyon on 85. Lens had seven shots on target to five. Lyon missed the chance to go top, AFP notes, and it was Yannick Cahuzac's first win as Lens coach.

Saturday

Lille 1–0 Le Havre was settled by Dilane Bakwa on 5, from Tanguy Nianzou's pass. Ayumu Seko was sent off for Le Havre on 61. Le Havre had seventeen shots to five but two on target, and are still without a win.

Stade Brestois 29 5–1 Angers was four up at half-time. Ludovic Ajorque scored on 9 from Hugo Magnetti's pass, Lucas Tousart on 17 from Joris Chotard, Kenny Lala from the penalty spot on 30, and Mama Baldé on 45 from Pathé Mboup. Prosper Peter replied for Angers on 47, Mboup made it five on 54 from Ajorque, and Jordan Lefort was sent off on 59 after VAR upgraded his card. Brest had nine shots on target to Angers' three.

Lorient 1–0 Paris FC: Gabin Bernardeau scored the only goal on 68, from Jean-Victor Makengo's pass. Paris FC had 60 per cent of the ball, but Lorient had more shots on target, five to three. It was Paris FC's first defeat of the season.

Monaco 2–2 Toulouse turned in the second half. Edan Diop scored on 29 from Aleksandr Golovin's pass, and set up Matthis Abline for the second on 38. Casper Tengstedt scored a penalty for Toulouse on 48, and Sion Oppong, on at half-time according to AFP, equalised on 59 from Tengstedt's pass. Each side had four shots on target.

Paris Saint-Germain 3–1 Le Mans began with a penalty, awarded after a VAR check for a foul on Achraf Hakimi and scored by Lucas Beraldo on 19. Louis Mafouta equalised for Le Mans on 54 from Lucas Calodat's pass. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia restored the lead on 61, and Maghnes Akliouche made it 3–1 on 68 from Warren Zaire-Emery; Désiré Doué missed a penalty on 90+3. Luis Enrique started with several first-choice players on the bench ahead of the Champions League trip to Manchester City, AFP reports; Akliouche said it was his first goal for PSG, and Luis Enrique called the result "almost perfect".

Sunday

Nice 2–1 Strasbourg came from behind. Dario Essugo put Strasbourg ahead on 41 from Conrad Harder's pass, Pape Demba Diop turned the ball into his own net on 45+2, and Jonathan Clauss won it on 81 from Sofiane Diop. Nice had six shots on target to three.

Rennes 4–1 Auxerre was won late. Esteban Lepaul scored on 15 from Charlie Cresswell's pass, Cameron Archer equalised for Auxerre on 25, and Adrien Thomasson, from Bryan Reynolds, restored the lead on 53. Boulaye Dia scored twice in stoppage time, on 90+2 from Ludovic Blas and on 90+4 from Reynolds. Rennes had 21 shots, eleven on target, and twelve corners.

Estac Troyes 0–2 Marseille: Amine Harit scored on 50 from Emerson's pass, and Himad Abdelli converted a penalty on 90+8. Marseille had 63 per cent of the ball and five shots, two on target. They began the weekend in the relegation zone, AFP notes, and played without Pierre-Emile Højbjerg, injured during the international break, and the suspended Timothy Weah; coach Bruno Genesio said the win "can help restore our confidence".

The table after matchday 6

#	Team	P	W	D	L	GD	Pts
1	Monaco	6	4	2	0	+5	14
2	Lille	6	4	1	1	+5	13
3	Rennes	6	4	1	1	+2	13
4	Lyon	6	3	2	1	+7	11
5	Paris FC	6	3	2	1	+4	11
6	Paris Saint-Germain	6	3	2	1	+3	11
7	Stade Brestois 29	6	2	2	2	+3	8
8	Lorient	6	2	2	2	0	8
9	Nice	6	2	2	2	−2	8
10	Lens	6	2	1	3	+1	7
11	Strasbourg	6	2	1	3	−1	7
12	Angers	6	2	1	3	−3	7
13	Marseille	6	2	0	4	+1	6
14	Le Mans	6	1	3	2	−2	6
15	Toulouse	6	1	3	2	−2	6
16	Auxerre	6	2	0	4	−8	6
17	Estac Troyes	6	1	1	4	−9	4
18	Le Havre	6	0	2	4	−4	2

Monaco lead Lille and Rennes by a point, with Lyon, Paris FC and PSG three back on eleven: six clubs within three points. The points race shows Monaco ahead or level after every matchday, and Lille and Rennes, both on ten a round ago, catching up after Monaco's draw. At the bottom Le Havre have two points and no win, two behind Troyes; Marseille's win lifts them from seventeenth to thirteenth, in a group of four clubs on six points.

Numbers to know

• Seven home wins in nine matches; Marseille's at Troyes was the round's only away win.
• Three red cards, for Udol of Lens, Seko of Le Havre and Lefort of Angers; all three teams lost the man and Lens still won.
• Seven players share the lead in the scoring charts on four goals each, among them Ferran Torres of PSG and Louis Mafouta of Le Mans.
• Brest's five goals were the most by any side in the round; four came before half-time.
• Lyon, Lille and Paris FC have each conceded four goals in six matches, the fewest in the league.

Next up

Matchday 7 opens on Friday 16 October with Le Mans v Toulouse at 18:45 UTC. On Saturday 17 October, Strasbourg host Paris Saint-Germain at 15:15 UTC, and Lille play Brest at 18:45 UTC. On Sunday 18 October, Lorient v Monaco and Paris FC v Rennes kick off at 15:15 UTC, and Lyon v Nice closes the round at 18:45 UTC. The full round is on the Ligue 1 page.

Sources for the context: Paris Saint-Germain, AFP via France 24, AFP via France 24, AFP via France 24, AFP via France 24.