Blaise Matuidi struck in the 89th minute to give Paris Saint-Germain a 1-0 win against struggling Evian at the Parc des Princes on Wednesday and take the capital club to the brink of the title.
It looked like PSG would have to settle for a point against their 10-man opponents until Lucas played in fellow substitute Matuidi and the France midfielder slotted the ball through the legs of goalkeeper Jesper Hansen at the near post.
The result leaves the reigning champions 10 points clear of nearest challengers Monaco with only four games remaining and means they can clinch a second consecutive title with a win away to Sochaux on Sunday, or 24 hours earlier if Monaco lose at relegated Ajaccio.
However, the nature of the performance left coach Laurent Blanc far from satisfied at full time.
“The first half was very bad. We appeared to be lacking in motivation and were very slow moving the ball,” said Blanc.
“There wasn’t enough movement and Evian could even have been in front. We had a word with the players at half-time and the second period was better.
“Of course it wasn’t our best performance but we did the job in the end.”
Fresh from winning the Coupe de la Ligue by beating Lyon 2-1 in the final last Saturday, Blanc’s side were looking for revenge on Evian, who beat them 2-0 in the reverse fixture back in December.
Evian are still scrapping to avoid relegation but they have performed well against the leading lights in Ligue 1 this season, taking four points out of a possible six against Monaco and also holding Lille.
They were unlucky not to take an early lead as well, Danish international Daniel Wass hitting the crossbar from a long-range free-kick in the fifth minute.
Wass then forced home goalkeeper Salvatore Sirigu into a good save from a header shortly after, as a PSG team still missing injured top scorer Zlatan Ibrahimovic and showing seven changes from that which beat Lyon struggled to find their rhythm.
When they did, Hansen raced off his line to deny Ezequiel Lavezzi and young midfielder Adrien Rabiot fired over as the first half ended goalless.
The early kick-off meant the Parc des Princes stands did not really fill up until the second half, but most of the drama was saved for after the restart.
Lavezzi was unable to convert a Rabiot cutback from inside the six-yard box before Evian were reduced to 10 men with an hour played when former Marseille defender Kassim Abdallah picked up a second yellow card for a foul on Lucas Digne.
Visiting coach Pascal Dupraz shook his head on the touchline, mindful of the onslaught that was to come, but Hansen saved from Lavezzi and Matuidi somehow missed the target after the Evian defence made a hash of dealing with a low ball across goal by the Argentine forward.
It looked as if Evian would hold on until, with just a minute remaining, Matuidi struck his fourth goal of the season much to the relief of the home fans.
Meanwhile, Lyon had to settle for a 0-0 draw away to Toulouse, a result which leaves Remi Garde’s side in fifth spot, two points behind rivals Saint-Etienne and three clear of Marseille in sixth.
OL must finish in the top five to qualify for next season’s Europa League.
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THREE
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Why it pays to compare
A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.
Route 1: bank transfer
The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.
Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount
Total received: €4,670.30
Route 2: online platform
The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.
Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction
Total received: €4,756
The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.
Cultural fiesta
What: The Al Burda Festival
When: November 14 (from 10am)
Where: Warehouse421, Abu Dhabi
The Al Burda Festival is a celebration of Islamic art and culture, featuring talks, performances and exhibitions. Organised by the Ministry of Culture and Knowledge Development, this one-day event opens with a session on the future of Islamic art. With this in mind, it is followed by a number of workshops and “masterclass” sessions in everything from calligraphy and typography to geometry and the origins of Islamic design. There will also be discussions on subjects including ‘Who is the Audience for Islamic Art?’ and ‘New Markets for Islamic Design.’ A live performance from Kuwaiti guitarist Yousif Yaseen should be one of the highlights of the day.
EU Russia
The EU imports 90 per cent of the natural gas used to generate electricity, heat homes and supply industry, with Russia supplying almost 40 per cent of EU gas and a quarter of its oil.
Results
57kg quarter-finals
Zakaria Eljamari (UAE) beat Hamed Al Matari (YEM) by points 3-0.
60kg quarter-finals
Ibrahim Bilal (UAE) beat Hyan Aljmyah (SYR) RSC round 2.
63.5kg quarter-finals
Nouredine Samir (UAE) beat Shamlan A Othman (KUW) by points 3-0.
67kg quarter-finals
Mohammed Mardi (UAE) beat Ahmad Ondash (LBN) by points 2-1.
71kg quarter-finals
Ahmad Bahman (UAE) defeated Lalthasanga Lelhchhun (IND) by points 3-0.
Amine El Moatassime (UAE) beat Seyed Kaveh Safakhaneh (IRI) by points 3-0.
81kg quarter-finals
Ilyass Habibali (UAE) beat Ahmad Hilal (PLE) by points 3-0
Ant-Man%20and%20the%20Wasp%3A%20Quantumania
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Sun jukebox
Rufus Thomas, Bear Cat (The Answer to Hound Dog) (1953)
This rip-off of Leiber/Stoller’s early rock stomper brought a lawsuit against Phillips and necessitated Presley’s premature sale to RCA.
Elvis Presley, Mystery Train (1955)
The B-side of Presley’s final single for Sun bops with a drummer-less groove.
Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two, Folsom Prison Blues (1955)
Originally recorded for Sun, Cash’s signature tune was performed for inmates of the titular prison 13 years later.
Carl Perkins, Blue Suede Shoes (1956)
Within a month of Sun’s February release Elvis had his version out on RCA.
Roy Orbison, Ooby Dooby (1956)
An essential piece of irreverent juvenilia from Orbison.
Jerry Lee Lewis, Great Balls of Fire (1957)
Lee’s trademark anthem is one of the era’s best-remembered – and best-selling – songs.
The National in Davos
We are bringing you the inside story from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, a gathering of hundreds of world leaders, top executives and billionaires.
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Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
The past Palme d'Or winners
2018 Shoplifters, Hirokazu Kore-eda
2017 The Square, Ruben Ostlund
2016 I, Daniel Blake, Ken Loach
2015 Dheepan, Jacques Audiard
2014 Winter Sleep (Kış Uykusu), Nuri Bilge Ceylan
2013 Blue is the Warmest Colour (La Vie d'Adèle: Chapitres 1 et 2), Abdellatif Kechiche, Adele Exarchopoulos and Lea Seydoux
2012 Amour, Michael Haneke
2011 The Tree of Life, Terrence Malick
2010 Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (Lung Bunmi Raluek Chat), Apichatpong Weerasethakul
2009 The White Ribbon (Eine deutsche Kindergeschichte), Michael Haneke
2008 The Class (Entre les murs), Laurent Cantet
Hotel Silence
Auður Ava Ólafsdóttir
Pushkin Press
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