PARIS — Defending champion Paris Saint-Germain was held 2-2 at home by Lorient on Saturday, but title rival Lens failed to take full advantage after drawing 1-1 at Nice later that day. The gap between the top two remains six points with three rounds left in the season.
A win for second-place Lens would have trimmed PSG's lead to four points ahead of their direct clash on May 13. Instead, Lens finished the day still six back after letting a lead slip against Nice.
The title of the job changes quickly; the explanation usually takes a little longer to catch up.
Lens lets it slip
Allan Saint-Maximin put Lens ahead in the 61st minute against his former club, collecting Adrien Thomasson's well-weighted pass from deep and finishing calmly. But after Lens defender Saud Abdulhamid received a red card in the 81st minute, Nice immediately leveled when Ali Abdi turned in Sofiane Diop's deflected free kick.
The match was decided by two quick swings—once in Lens's favor, once against them—and the numbers on the table stayed unchanged.
PSG's uneven afternoon
Ibrahim Mbaye put PSG ahead in the sixth minute when goalkeeper Yvon Mvogo fumbled a cross straight onto him. The lead lasted just six minutes before Pablo Pagis Equalized with a neat volley past 19-year-old backup goalkeeper Renato Marin.
Warren Zaïre-Emery restored PSG's lead in the 62nd minute with a deflected strike from 20 meters. But substitute Pierre Mounguengue gabled a back pass on his debut,Intercepted by Benin striker Aiyegun Tosin, who raced clear and scored in the 77th minute.
This followed PSG's 5-4 Champions League semifinal win over Bayern Munich earlier in the week. Coach Luis Enrique had rested goalkeeper Matvei Safonov,midfielder Vitinha and defender Nuno Mendes, with Ousmane Dembélé, João Neves and Zaïre-Emery starting on the bench.
Marseille's troubles deepen
Marseille's difficult season continued with a 3-0 loss at Nantes, their fourth defeat in six games. The result badly damages their hopes of finishing in the top three, which guarantees Champions League qualification.
Things got worse later when Monaco won 2-1 at last-place Metz, sending Marseille down to seventh. Paul Pogba started for Monaco—his first league start since 2023—and played an hour. Folarin Balogun and former Barcelona winger Ansu Fati scored the goals.
Nantes' forward trio clicked as Ignatius Ganago, former Marseille winger Rémy Cabella and Matthis Abline all found the net.