Cissé seals ten-man triumph

By Chris Burke

A powerful strike from substitute Edouard Cissé gave ten-man Paris Saint-Germain FC a 2-1 win against fierce rivals Olympique de Marseille while LOSC Lille Métropole moved one point behind Ligue 1 leaders Olympique Lyonnais with a 2-0 victory away against FC Istres.

Cissé strike
Despite losing Sylvain Armand to a red card as early as the 19th minute for a dangerous tackle on former PSG player Fabrice Fiorèse, the capital club drew inspiration from a vibrant Parc des Princes to make it seven straight wins over their opponents from the south.

Pauleta pounces
Fabien Barthez could only watch as Pauleta opened the scoring just after the half-hour mark with his sixth goal this season and though Laurent Batlles levelled the scores on 41 minutes, Cissé had the last word with 22 minutes left, ensuring PSG move up into tenth place.

Lille pressure
Marseille stay in sixth, ten points behind Lyon, with Lille the only team applying sustained pressure on the French champions. Nigerian striker Peter Odemwingie fired in his first league goal for the northern club on 38 minutes and captain Philippe Brunel converted from the penalty spot six minutes after the restart to give Lille their eighth victory in nine games and cement Istres in last place as the only team without a win.

Gap widens
The gap from second to third is now six points following AJ Auxerre's 1-1 draw away against FC Nantes Atlantique. Mamadou Bagayoko put the home side ahead on the stroke of half-time and it was only after the dismissal of Nantes midfield player Emerse Faé on 55 minutes that Guy Roux's men came to life. Teemu Tainio equalised with 13 minutes to go but Auxerre were unable to carve out a late winner.