Nantes soar, Lille land a blow as France’s European week splits
Three French clubs won in Europe, but Nantes alone have already booked a place in the quarter-finals.
The net bulged four times behind Vitesse, and FC Nantes’ players had the last word: a 4-1 victory on Wednesday sent them through 5-1 on aggregate. Les Canaris made the decisive statement in the Champions League last 16, turning a comfortable first-leg advantage into something considerably less comfortable for their Dutch opponents.
France’s other wins came in Europe on Thursday, but neither is settled. LOSC Lille beat AS PAOK Salonika 2-1 away in the Europa League, earning a narrow lead before the return at LOSC Lille on 20 March. OGC Nice, fresh from their 5-0 derby win over Olympique de Marseille on Sunday, could not carry that sparkle into Europe: Getafe won 2-1, with the second leg at Getafe on 20 March.
AS Monaco also have work to do after Nottingham Forest won 3-1 in the first leg of their Europa League tie. The return is at Nottingham Forest on 20 March. Two French defeats in those ties leave the arithmetic plain enough; the home sides must find answers before the visitors get to enjoy the final word.
Paris Saint-Germain provided the other French victory, beating AS Aris Salonika 2-1 on Thursday in the Europa Conference League. That leaves PSG third in the league phase, with 15 points from six matches, one behind Leganés and Wolverhampton Wanderers, who lead on 16. It is a good position, though the top two have offered PSG no invitation to dawdle.
So the week’s balance is three wins and two defeats: Nantes through, Lille carrying a slim lead and Nice a deficit into Thursday’s returns, Monaco facing the steepest climb. Nantes, whose European business is already done for this round, can turn their attention to Wednesday’s French Cup tie with Stade Rennais FC. Europe has rewarded France in patches; it has not, as ever, agreed to make the paperwork painless.