Ligue 1 entertained us throughout September with plenty of
big matches, quality goals and entertaining football which all football fans
can enjoy. PSG have continued their perfect start winning all 8 of their league
games so far. Lille, Montpellier and St Etienne make up the top 4. While at the
wrong end, Guingamp prop up the table but have show signs of recovery while Nantes
and shockingly Monaco make up the bottom 3.
PSG have been
flawless in the league so far this season notching 8 wins out of 8 and looking
unstoppable domestically. However, their Champions League campaign started with
defeat at Anfield against Liverpool and no doubt the goal is to win the Champions
League but a bad start like that could be costly in a tightly contested group
containing Liverpool and Napoli. On French shores, nobody can seem to touch the
capital-based club and goals are flowing nicely with Neymar already on 7 league
goals while Edinson Cavani has notched 5 goals. Their goals are very much
spread across the whole team and Tuchel has also utilised the club’s academy
with the likes of Timothy Weah, Moussa Diaby and Stephen N’Soki getting their
opportunity to impress and this a huge positive noting PSG may not be reliant
on splashing cash to find players. You would find it extremely difficult to
find a reason why PSG cannot continue their perfect run throughout October.
They kick off their October run of matches against inconsistent Lyon who can
beat Manchester City in Champions League and draw at home to struggling Nantes.
Tuchel has made a big impression so far and no doubt their perfect run doesn’t seem
to have an ending anytime soon.
The top 4 is made up of Lille,
Montpellier and St Etienne who all had an excellent September. Christophe
Galtier’s Lille are having a wonderful start to the campaign and are looking like
a very good team who are difficult to beat and score against. 3 wins from 4 in
their September matches have fired Galtier’s men into 2nd place.
Their only blemish was a defeat away at Caen, but the likes of Nicolas Pepe and
Jonathan Bamba is the reason why Lille are playing so well. Both Pepe and Bamba
have notched 5 league goals each with the latter notching a brilliant brace in
their September ending victory over Marseille. Montpellier are also enjoying a
rich run of form with Michel der Zakarian’s side sitting pretty in 3rd
after an unbeaten September which saw them notch 8 points. They ended September
with a moral boosting derby victory over Nimes and things are looking very rosy
indeed. New strikers Gaetan Laborde and Andy Delort both got their first goals
for the club in September and no doubt these two are prolific at this level and
Montpellier will aim to continue their good form as the October matches draws
near. St Etienne are also a rich run of form with the les verts storming up the
Ligue 1 table after a slow August. Jean-Louis Gasset has got St Etienne going
with 3 straight league wins since their 4-0 defeat against PSG. Victories over
Caen, Toulouse and Monaco have followed that hammering and Gasset has certainly
got the reaction he wanted. Wahbi Khazri is proving an excellent acquisition by
the les verts after notching 4 goals so far including 2 in their recent winning
run. However, somebody’s excellent run could end when Lille and St Etienne face
each other in their opening match in October. A tasty encounter with Galtier
facing the club he managed for over 7 years and no doubt emotions will be high
with security in the top 4 guaranteed for the winner.
Another side who enjoyed September was Strasbourg. Le Racing suffered just 1 defeat in September and picked
up thunderous home wins over Amiens and Dijon. Strasbourg have stormed into 8th
place in the Ligue 1 table after notching just 4 points in the opening month of
the campaign. Julio Da Costa and new signing Lebo Mothiba are forming a very
good partnership up top with 6 goals combined. Da Costa has 4 of those goals
and he is looking much sharper and fitter after a slow campaign last time out.
The second season syndrome of August seems to have escaped Strasbourg’s system
and no doubt they will want to continue their good form during October.
In contrast, September has been extremely difficult for Rennes, Monaco and Nantes. Last season’s
runners up Monaco have struggled for
goals and confidence so far this season. The principality club have sunk into
the bottom 3 in the Ligue 1 table and Jardim must quickly find a solution and a
team that works. A winless September and a run of 1 win in their opening 8 is a
major concern for a side who have been brilliant in the last few seasons. From
an outsider perspective, it seems the consistent sales of top stars over the
last 2 years in particular is beginning to take its toll on the club. The likes
of Benjamin Mendy, Tiemoue Bakayoko, Bernardo Silva, Thomas Lemar, Fabinho and
Guido Carrillo have seen Monaco net nearly £300 million and Monaco have
struggled to replace what they have lost. Jardim has a completely new squad
which so far hasn’t gelled and reached its full potential. Not even regulars
Danijel Subasic, Radamel Falcao and Kamil Glik can find their best form at the
moment and it seems times are tough. There is also speculation off the pitch that
majority owner Ekaterina Rybolovleva may want to sell his stake, but he has vocally
denied the club is for sale but clearly an issue at the club could well have
spread down to the players and no doubt the fans will be concerned. Their form
must improve, and fast otherwise things could turn ugly on the principality.
Rennes start to the season hasn’t been that much better than Monaco’s. Sabri
Lamouchi’s side have begun the difficulties of playing Thursday/ Sunday matches
following their qualification to the Europa League group stages. While they
started perfectly in Europe, domestically Rennes are struggling. Les Rouges had
a winless September losing 3 of their 4 games and losing their perfect record
at home. They have sunk to 16th in the table and no doubt this is
Lamouchi’s toughest spell at the club since taking over in the middle of last
season. Lamouchi will no doubt want an improvement and fast as October draws
near. However, it has been a very disappointing start to the season for Nantes
and the first sacking has arrived with Miguel Cardoso given his marching orders
following just 1 win in 8 matches leaving Nantes in 19th place.
While from the outset it is very harsh, chairman Waldemar Kita is a man who
wants instant success, and anything less isn’t good enough as Claudio Ranieri
found out last season. Cardoso has struggled to get Nantes going despite heavy
backing in the transfer window from Kita and they are also winless at home with
just 2 points collected on their own pitch and that simply isn’t good enough. Nantes
have appointed Ligue 1 legend Vahid Halilhodzic as their new manager and he
must hit the ground running and fast. The Nantes fans will be pleased I’m sure
with the appointment of Halilhodzic having had spells in charge of Lille,
Rennes and PSG in the past. His first game is a tasty derby against Bordeaux
and no doubt a win here who ignite their season once again.
Things had started horrendously for rock bottom Guingamp with 6 straight league defeats
and the pressure was beginning to mount on the players and manager Antoine Kombouare.
However, a draw away to Nimes and a win at Angers both games without conceding
has ignited their season. The club has been rooted to the bottom for much of
this season and while they are still bottom, they have managed to build some
momentum to take into October. However, they are yet to pick up a single point
at home so far this season and they must address this issue fast. 3 disappointing
defeats to PSG, Toulouse and Bordeaux have felt the fans frustrated and they
will be desperate to see something from them sooner rather than later. Furthermore,
Guingamp are still short on goals notching just 5 goals so far this season and
conceding 19. While those records are poor, Kombouare will believe they have
turned a corner and they will hope to push against Montpellier in their next game
following their 2-match unbeaten run.
September was entertaining, and no doubt October will be the
same with some mouth-watering games to come including PSG vs Lyon, Monaco vs Rennes, Bordeaux vs Nantes, Lille vs St Etienne,
Nantes vs Toulouse, Nice vs Marseille, Bordeaux vs Nice and Marseille vs PSG.
Quality goals and entertainment will follow in October as this certainly could
be the month where the season really begins to take shape and we as fans get an
insight as to where each club’s season is going to head.
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