A red card following nine seconds in Nice, two outings on a stretcher in Brest, Steve Mandanda back at the Vélodrome with Rennes (1-1): Sunday, the eighth day of Ligue 1 produced strong images, while waiting for OL-PSG in evening.
Todibo, rouge direct
Nice-Angers (0-1), 3:00 p.m.: SCO striker Abdallah Sima kicks off, heads towards the Nice goal, receives a pass and is jostled by Jean-Clair Todibo, full axis, following five seconds. Referee Bastien Dechepy shows the red card four seconds later, to everyone’s amazement!
The statistician Opta has not found any trace of such a rapid expulsion since he analyzed Ligue 1 in 2006. Todibo pushes back the previous poor performance of Toulouse’s Maxime Spano quite far, released following 39 seconds in Lille in 2014.
In Reims, defeated 3-0 by Monaco (golovin, Minamino and Ben Yedder), another red card caused a stir: that of defender Bradley Locko, following a sole on an opponent who came to counter his pass…
“The referee killed the game“, dropped Reims coach Oscar Garcia, and “it is not the first time“. Its president Jean-Pierre Caillot is also suspended until December 31 for having criticized the arbitration following Reims-Lyon (1-1) at the end of August.
Mandanda, the ovation
A historic figure in OM, with a record 613 matches played, Steve Mandanda received a standing ovation on his return to the Stade Vélodrome, Rennes jersey on his back, with loud applause for “The phenomenon“, his nickname in Marseille, during the warm-up.
The 37-year-old goalkeeper left for Brittany with a point in his luggage (1-1) because Mattéo Guendouzi, unhappy with an own goal (25th), caught up with an angry header (52nd).
OM are first in the championship but can be overtaken by Paris SG, traveling on Sunday (8:45 p.m.) to Lyon, and by Lens, which plays in Nantes (5:05 p.m.).
Spectacular injuries
The Brest-Ajaccio meeting (0-1) had a worrying first period, with two players violently hit in the head and forced to go out on a stretcher.
Seconds following kick-off, ACA goalkeeper Benjamin Leroy (33) caught a team-mate’s thigh or knee head-on as he tried to catch a speeding ball. Brest striker Islam Slimani. The emergency services examined him for a long time before evacuating him.
In the 28th minute, an aerial duel then left Noah Fadiga on the floor, stunned in a head-to-head clash with Ismaël Diallo. The 22-year-old Brest side also left the lawn on a stretcher, raising a thumb to try to reassure the audience.
Ajaccio signs its first success of the season thanks to Romain Hamouma (65th). The Corsicans remain last but only one point behind Brest and Strasbourg.
A breath of fresh air for Troyes
In the other meeting of the followingnoon, Troyes won at Clermont (3-1). This third victory of the season, following two defeats in a row, propels Estac to 10th place.
Badly embarked following a goal from Clermont captain Johan Gastien (3rd), the visitors took the best with a double from Mama Baldé (24th, 53rd) and a final goal from Renaud Ripart (82nd).
