Bordeaux defeats Monaco, Lyon rises to 2nd
Last Updated: Saturday, October 31, 2009 | 8:56 PM ET
The Associated Press
Bordeaux's Benoit Tremoulinas, left, battles for the ball against Monaco's Igor Lolo during their French League soccer match Saturday. (Bob Edme/Associated Press)Bordeaux extended its lead in the French league on Saturday by beating Monaco 1-0 through defender Marc Planus' second-half goal while seven-time champion Lyon rose to second overall with a 1-0 win at fierce rival Saint-Etienne.
Planus scored his first goal in the league this season in the 63rd minute.
Marouane Chamakh's header from a free kick by Geraldo Wendel was saved by goalkeeper Stephane Ruffier and Planus pounced to hit the net from the rebound.
The result also extended Bordeaux's unbeaten home run to 39 games. The defending champions have 25 points, two more than Lyon. Monaco is third with 21 points.
"When we look at the standings, it's a nice feeling," Bordeaux coach Laurent Blanc said.
"We knew that we would be in first place with a win. To achieve our goals while others can't follow our pace makes us happy."
Monaco created several chances in the first 10 minutes but Bordeaux, which plays at Bayern Munich next week in the Champions League, then gradually took hold of the game.
"If you look at the score, it looks like we struggled," Blanc said. "But if you look at the game, we were dominant. Bordeaux was better than Monaco tonight."
Lyon defeats Saint-Etienne
Lyon maintained its 15-year unbeaten record at Saint-Etienne and bounced back after two consecutive league losses.
Claude Puel's team struggled until the 83rd minute, when former Saint-Etienne striker Bafetimbi Gomis took advantage of goalkeeper Jeremy Janot's bad clearance to score his fifth league goal this season.
Marseille lost ground on Bordeaux after drawing 1-1 at home with Toulouse.
Toulouse midfielder Moussa Sissoko put his team ahead in the 30th minute with a 30-yard free kick into the top corner before Brazilian striker Brandao levelled in the 75th.
Striker Ireneusz Jelen scored twice as Auxerre beat fourth-place Montpellier 2-1 for its fifth consecutive victory.
Jelen scored in the 16th minute by beating goalkeeper Geoffrey Jourdren from close range following Aurelien Capoue's cross.
Jelen doubled the lead just before the half-hour mark, latching on to Polish midfielder Dariusz Dudka's pass and slotting home.
Defender Nenad Dzodic scored a consolation goal for Montpellier in the 90th following playmaker Alberto Costa's dismissal in the 74th.
"We were too naive on the goals," Montpellier coach Rene Girard said after his team's second consecutive defeat. "We sometimes forgot the basics."
