Dimas Andri10

Lyon stretch their lead as PSG falter
Saturday 21 February 2009
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Karim Benzema (left) celebrates after his clincher for Lyon at NancyKarim Benzema (left) celebrates after his clincher for Lyon at Nancy (©Getty Images)Photos/WallpapersPhotos/Wallpapers »

Olympique Lyonnais continued their march towards an eighth consecutive Ligue 1 title with a 2-0 away win at AS Nancy-Lorraine that increased their lead to six points after closest challengers Paris Saint-Germain FC drew 0-0 at Grenoble Foot 38.

Lyon success
Despite resting several key players, Lyon led on 19 minutes when Cris turned in at the far post after Jean-Alain Boumsong's flick-on and after Hugo Lloris saved a Youssouf Hadji penalty for Nancy early in the second half, Karim Benzema made sure of victory in added time. PSG, however, could find no way past a stubborn Grenoble and on Sunday could be overtaken by Olympique de Marseille and FC Girondins de Bordeaux, who meet struggling Le Mans UC 72 and AS Saint-Etienne respectively.

Toulouse held
Toulouse FC could have gone above PSG but were themselves held 0-0 at home against lowly Valenciennes FC. That side remain just above the relegation zone while FC Sochaux-Montbéliard, second from bottom, came from behind to beat FC Lorient 2-1 thanks to Mevlüt Erdinç's 90th-minute winner. There was no upturn in fortunes for Le Havre AC, however, who remain well adrift at the foot of the standings after a 2-1 home defeat by AJ Auxerre. Valter Birsa scored the decider for the visitors with 12 minutes remaining.

Strugglers draw
FC Nantes and SM Caen remain just two and four points respectively ahead of third-bottom AS Saint-Etienne follwing a 1-1 draw while in the late game Stade Rennais FC are sixth after a 1-0 win at OGC Nice thanks to Olivier Thomert's goal. LOSC Lille Métropole, now seventh, will aim to close the gap on the leaders when they welcome AS Monaco FC on Sunday.

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