The French football championship has a new leader with AS Monaco just before the international break.
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Surprise in Ligue 1, AS Monaco will spend two weeks alone on the throne of the championship after its victory against Rennes, when Paris drew in Nice. Dirty Sunday for the French futsal team. After narrowly failing in the semi-final against Argentina, the Blues collapsed against the conquering Ukrainians. Same scenario for Stade Toulouse, which recorded a second defeat in a row in the Top 14, while in cycling, Christophe Laporte triumphed in Paris-Tours.
Ligue 1: Monaco prances in the lead, Paris and Marseille stall
Monaco confirms its very good start to the season. Winner on the Rennes pitch (1-2), ASM took advantage of Paris Saint-Germain’s draw in Nice (1-1) to take sole control of the championship. Five days after a European setback against Arsenal, the Parisians have stalled again, while the international break comes at just the right time for the reigning French champions.
The Monegasques have still not experienced defeat and are number one in the title race with two points ahead of Paris. A race where OM fell further behind after their draw at the Vélodrome against Angers (1-1) on Friday. Roberto de Zerbi’s men remain third, but with the same number of points as Reims (14) and one unit more than Lille, fifth after their victory against Toulouse.
Cycling: Christophe Laporte the strongest in Paris-Tours
Christophe Laporte (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) had not yet raised his arms in 2024, but he corrected the anomaly with style on the roads of Paris-Tours. Winner in the sprint, the bronze medalist of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games overcame the Czech Mathias Vacek (Lidl-Trek) in the final straight, while Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) took third place.
The 2023 European champion was able to deal with the difficult conditions on the vineyard paths of Indre-et-Loire to make the difference by isolating himself at the front in the company of his runner-up of the day, around twenty kilometers away of arrival. Sharper and faster in the finale, the Varois ends the year on a good note.
French team: Mbappé, the galactic spirit more than blue
Is it a real disenchantment with the tricolor jersey or just a desire to acclimatize to the White House? Not selected Thursday for the next two Nations League matches with the Blues due to a “not serious problem but requires attention“, Kylian Mbappé appeared in Madrid’s starting lineup on Saturday against Villarreal (2-0).
Although the former Parisian did not score, he still played 70 minutes and created several chances. His injury to the hamstrings of his left thigh contracted about a fortnight ago seems to be history, even if the Real Madrid medical staff preferred that he be spared during the next meetings with the team. France. Forced rest or not, the “Kyks” currently favors white over blue.
Futsal: the French fall heavily against Ukraine for 3rd place
After their defeat in the World Cup semi-final against Argentina on Thursday, the futsal Blues were counting on the small final on Sunday to exit through the front door. Wasted effort. They failed against a strong Ukrainian team (7-1) and finished 4th for their first participation in a World Cup. Earlier in the competition, the French successively won against Thailand and Paraguay, after a controlled group stage, despite the controversy of the match against Iran.
Although the discipline is most practiced in schools in France, high-level futsal took time to establish itself at the international level. This good tricolor result bodes well for wearing the French colors in the years to come, and why not one day on the Olympic stage. The title went to Brazil, defeating Argentina in the final (2-1) and crowned for the sixth time.
Top 14: Stade Toulouse falls to Castres
After Union Bordeaux-Bègles last week, it was neighbor Castres who once again held the reigning French champion in check (28-23). Stade Toulouse, a candidate for its own succession, controlled the debates in the first period before failing to hit the nail on the head. Castres, more lucid, and particularly solid in these home derbies, took advantage of their efficient forward line and their opponent’s too many ball losses, to win their third match of the season, all at home. UBB, La Rochelle and Toulon took the opportunity to move ahead of Toulouse in the rankings after five days.
For its part, Pau has reinstated the 2nd line Hugo Auradou into its squad in Perpignan (11-10), still under investigation for “violent rape in a meeting” in Argentina.