Marseille loses 1-0 and drops points in Europa League chase

Rennes could move above Marseille into fifth with a home win against defending champion Paris Saint-Germain in another 2020-21 Ligue 1 game on Sunday.

Saint-Etienne's goal came in the 43rd minute when Arnaud Nordin (in pic) turned in Wahbi Khazri's cross from the left to the back post (File Photo).

Marseille dropped crucial points in the race for the fifth place and a Europa League spot when it lost 1-0 at Saint-Etienne in the 2020-21 Ligue 1 season on Sunday.

Rennes could move above Marseille into fifth with a home win against defending champion Paris Saint-Germain in another French top-division game on the same day. On the other hand, PSG, which will be without the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Marco Verratti, needs a victory to stay one point behind table-topper Lille in a tense title race.

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Midtable club Saint-Etienne's goal came in the 43rd minute when Arnaud Nordin turned in Wahbi Khazri's cross from the left flank towards the back post.

In the second half, Marseille goalkeeper Steve Mandanda had done well to prevent further goal-scoring opportunities. The visitor almost equalised in stoppage time when substitute Dario Benedetto came up with a lethal header, which was brilliantly saved by the home team's shot-stopper Etienne Green.

Meanwhile, AS Monaco has to win at Reims later on Sunday to reclaim the third position in the standings and the Champions League qualification spot from Olympique Lyonnais. League leader Lille had won 3-0 at RC Lens on Friday.