Lille needed a late equaliser from Luiz Araujo to draw 1-1 at home to Montpellier on Friday and guarantee it will keep top spot in a close French title race, regardless of whether defending champion Paris Saint-Germain wins this weekend.
With time running out against a well-drilled and counterattacking Montpellier side, a loose ball fell to the Brazilian on the left of the penalty area and Araujo curled a superb shot past goalkeeper Jonas Omlin in the 84th minute.
Eighth-place Montpellier’s main threat — Teji Savanier providing for strikers Gaetan Laborde and Andy Delort — caught Lille cold after 20 minutes. The unselfish Laborde chased a pass down the right and whipped in a fine cross which the alert Delort met with a diving header.
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He joined Laborde on 12 goals this season, a good total considering that Delort has twice tested positive for coronavirus during this season.
Lille is four points ahead of Champions League semifinalist PSG, which hosts an improving Saint-Etienne side on Sunday without the suspended Neymar. There are five rounds remaining after this weekend's matches.
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