Saint-Etienne snatches its rise in Ligue 1 at the end of the extension of the play-off against Metz

At the end of an incredible match which saw them virtually out of the running for promotion on Sunday, the Greens are back in Ligue 1, two years after their relegation. FC Metz goes down to Ligue 2.

Saint-Etienne holds his ticket out of purgatory. The Greens won their comeback in Ligue 1, Sunday June 2, in a hostile context, in Metz in the return play-off (2-2, 4-3 over the two matches). Olivier Dall’Oglio’s players had to go through extra time and score in the 117th minute to get there. The newcomers Ibrahima Wadji, scorer, and Nathanaël Mbuku, passer, are the heroes of an ASSE which has been mistreated for a long time.

In a boiling Saint-Symphorien stadium, the Stéphanois experienced a totally irrational start to the match at their expense. After the 2-1 first leg victory, they quickly found themselves in an even more favorable position as they saw their opponent become numerically inferior after just five minutes of play. Guilty of a sole on the thigh of Dennis Appiah, the young Papa Diallo was caught by VAR and sent off.

While we thought Saint-Etienne was on the royal road, the opposite happened. The expulsion only fanned the embers of Metz’s hopes. Excited, Laszlo Bölöni’s players took control and opened the scoring with Lamine Camara, finishing at the far post from a service from Matthieu Udol (18th). Behind, FC Metz decided to press and the inevitable Georges Mikautadze played his part by obtaining a penalty after eliminating two players on the left side. The Georgian international, born in the Lyon suburbs, converted it with the complicity of the post (25th). One more sign attesting to the total success of the Lorraines in these first minutes. At this moment, they were virtually held for the first time in the double confrontation.

Non-existent for more than thirty minutes, the Stéphanois got back in the saddle on their first clear opportunity, from a corner. Alone at the far post, Léo Pétrot punished Alexandre Oukidja, staying too close to his line (35th). An opportunistic goal which was enough to put the two teams level over the two matches.

Helped by the accumulated fatigue on the Metz side, the Greens took the upper hand in the second period without realizing their domination. They have pyet believed to take an option thanks to Yvann Maçon, just after the hour mark. But the referee of the match, Jérôme Brisard, decided to cancel it after consulting the VAR, considering a foul by Ibrahim Sissoko on Oukidja (66th), during a second contested decision (but validated thanks to the video) by the Greens after Mikautadze’s penalty.

But nothing seemed to be able to discourage Saint-Etienne on Sunday, not even playing for an extension. If the standoff finally shifted to his side, we must not forget that Metz created two huge chances in this additional time. First, an impressive reflex from Gautier Larsonneur neutralized the madjer signed Kévin van der Kerkhof (98th), then Dennis Appiah tackled at the last minute in front of Arthur Atta a few meters from the goal line (108th).

We better understand the disillusionment of the Metz players when the final whistle blew, some too emotional to answer journalists’ questions. There is also this old refrain well known in Lorraine, since the FCM is experiencing its seventh relegation to the second division in the 21st century, a record in the five major European championships.