Paris and OM get share of Classique credit

Paris-Saint Germain are within a point of Ligue 1 leaders Olympique de Marseille after a 2-0 win at Parc des Princes, but Sunday's Classique was a performance the whole of French football felt like celebrating.

"Breathtaking and spectacular," was L'Equipe's conclusion on the 85th meeting between the two French powerhouse clubs, which was settled by a first-half Lucas goal and an Edinson Cavani effort after the break. It was Paris's third successive 2-0 home win against OM, but if the scoreline was predictable, the action on the pitch was anything but

This season's surprise package, Marseille went for the throat from the off – a surprise given the tendency of visiting sides to keep it tight at the Parc des Princes. They may have left the stadium with a 0% share of the goals, but a 52% share of possession was a measure of their presence in the game.

"That was a very, very good game seen from the dugouts," said Paris coach Laurent Blanc, a UEFA Cup finalist as an OM player back in 1999. "We could feel the physical intensity of the game, of course, but it was also great from a technical point of view. We saw two good teams, and Marseille were better than us for the first 25 minutes."

Full-back Maxwell concurred. "All credit to Marseille," he said. "They are really a good team. Lots of pace. I imagine it was a great game to watch."

OM coach Marcelo Bielsa could not feel so positive about the result, or the red card shown to Gianelli Imbula on 78 minutes, but gave his side credit for "a dominant first-half performance", noting: "Then, as the minutes went by, we lost our consistency."

Striker André-Pierre Gignac, who hit the Paris post with an early header, agreed: "We produced 20 very good minutes at the start. There were two fine teams on the pitch, but I think Marseille were better."

Olympique Lyonnais's 3-1 win against EA Guingamp on Sunday means only two points separate the top three in Ligue 1 – a shock given that Paris were widely predicted to steamroll all of their opponents and win a third successive title at a canter.

Zlatan Ibrahimović's return for the final minutes of the OM game after finally shaking off his heel problem, but while his side are – along with Chelsea FC – one of only two unbeaten sides left in Europe's big leagues this season, French football fans have received another reminder that Blanc's side can expect no gifts from their rivals this season.