Olympique de Marseille and AS Monaco both won on Thursday night in the UEFA Conference League, while Olympique Lyonnais salvaged a 1-1 draw at Real Sociedad in the UEFA Europa League, giving France’s clubs a mixed but far more encouraging evening than the one that preceded it, Le Parisien reported.
The night stood in sharp contrast to Tuesday’s results, when Paris Saint-Germain thrashed Villarreal 6-0 but Lens were humiliated 9-1 by Como, with Lille and Rennes also delivering uneven performances. With Lyon, Marseille and Monaco all in action on Thursday, the question was whether the French contingent could close the European week on a positive note.
Marseille 1-0 Bayer Leverkusen: Gouiri Ends the Win Drought
Marseille’s 1-0 victory in Germany was the first of their European campaign this season, and it arrived at a cost. For much of the match at the BayArena, Bruno Genesio’s side were pushed back by Leverkusen, with goalkeeper Jeffrey de Lange called into action repeatedly to keep the score level.
The breakthrough came in the 77th minute, when Amine Gouiri curled a right-footed strike into the net. The goal was the decisive moment of the match and instantly relaunched Marseille’s Conference League campaign after a difficult start. De Lange’s saves earlier in the game proved just as important — without them, the French side would have been chasing the game far earlier.
Monaco 2-0 Nordsjaelland: Nine Points from Three Games
AS Monaco made it nine points from three Conference League matches with a 2-0 home win over Danish side Nordsjaelland. Filipe Luis’s team started slowly against a compact opponent but broke through in the 33rd minute, when Mathys Detourbet finished a move from Takumi Minamino.
Monaco pushed for a second goal after halftime and twice thought they had it — efforts from Paris Brunner and Minamino were both ruled out for offside. The insurance goal finally came in stoppage time, Matthis Abline finishing a swift counterattack to seal the win.
The result moves Monaco at least into the knockout playoff places and leaves them level on points at the top of the group with Twente, Panathinaikos and Lugano.
Lyon 1-1 Real Sociedad: A Point Under New Management
Lyon’s Europa League trip to Spain ended in a 1-1 draw at the Anoeta, a result that limited the damage in a match that was the club’s first since the unexpected departure of head coach Paulo Fonseca. Jorge Maciel took charge for the game.
Real Sociedad took the lead before halftime through Orri Óskarsson, but Lyon responded well after the break. Corentin Tolisso equalized from a Tanner Tessmann cross, and the midfielder came close to scoring the winner late on. At the other end, goalkeeper Dominik Greif made several saves to preserve the point.
The draw lifts Lyon one place to 12th in the Europa League standings.
What the Results Mean for the French Clubs’ Standings
Three wins from Thursday’s three matches is a turnaround from Tuesday’s two defeats and a draw, and it leaves the overall French picture far more balanced. Monaco’s nine points put them in contention for a direct route to the last 16, while Marseille’s first win of the campaign keeps them alive in their group. Lyon’s point in San Sebastián keeps them within reach of the knockout places in a crowded Europa League table.
With the league-phase matchdays continuing next month, all three clubs now turn their attention back to domestic competition, carrying European momentum — or at least respectability — with them.
