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Neymar and PSG fell from first place in Ligue 1 on Saturday. Getty
Lille edged out Paris Saint-Germain to take the lead in Ligue 1 on Saturday after Jonathan David found the back of the net in a 1-0 win over the French champions, which had Neymar sent off at the last minute.
Canadian forward David scored in the first half to put the Northerners to 66 points with seven games remaining, three ahead of PSG, who were mediocre throughout the match.
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Neymar was sent off when he picked up a second yellow card for pushing Tiago Djalo, who reacted with a spiel and also saw the red one.
Monaco moved up to third place with 62 points with a 4-0 win over the promoted Metz.
Olympique Lyonnais, fourth with 60 points, will face RC Lens, fifth-placed, later on Saturday.
PSG have won seven of the last eight Ligue 1 titles, and only finished second behind Monaco in 2017, while Lille is looking to claim their first since 2011.
Lille, which did not feature Yusuf Yazici after the Turkish midfielder tested positive for COVID-19, defended thoroughly and was the sharpest team in the Parc des Princes to rack up three deserved points after two consecutive defeats in competitive matches.
PSG, traveling to Bayern Munich for the first leg of the Champions League quarter-final on Wednesday, have lost their last three home games in Ligue 1.
Neymar, in his first Ligue 1 start in over two months, found Kylian Mbappé early on with a pass that split the defense, only for the French forward to see his low cross shot parried by Mike Maignan.
Lille took the lead in the 20th minute when David fired under the roof of the net from a Jonathan Ikone cross after controlling the ball with a soft touch.
PSG struggled to create opportunities despite enjoying most of the possession and Lille threatened lightning-fast counterattacks several times.
Neymar forced Maignan to make a good save with a powerful half volley from outside the area within an hour and approached the 70 with a plummet header that narrowly missed.
However, the Brazilian will miss PSG’s next league game against Racing Strasbourg after his expulsion.
Before, Monaco were in their own class against Metz, with penalties from Cesc Fabregas and Wissam Ben Yedder, who scored a double, and a goal from Kevin Volland, all after the break.
However, coach Niko Kovac refused to get carried away.
“There are still 21 points up for grabs and we must first secure fourth place,” he told a news conference.
“But we’re good. We have good momentum.”
Source: espn.co.uk
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