Next week is the first Classico of the season and, with the two teams in the top two places, the match could and should be epic. But let’s be honest, both teams need to improve hugely on this week’s showings.

Marseille got back to winning ways after two defeats in a week. They at times looked irresistible going forward and chaotic in defence. But Gignac stopped fighting with team-mates long enough to set up Thauvin (with whom he had a little hissy fit just beforehand) for the winner, as they scraped a fortunate 2-1 win over a game young Lens team.

PSG also failed to impress, particularly in a woeful first half, at Lorient, but came from a goal down to win 2-1. Scary to think that the team still really hasn’t clicked yet and yet is still unbeaten. As for Cabaye’s dire performance… the Dreamboat is looking more like the Titanic at the moment…

Only a point behind the Parisians are the league’s in-form team, Lyon, who followed up last week’s Olympico victory with an impressive come-from-behind 3-1 win over last week’s heroes Nice. In-form Lyon’s in-form player Lacazette had the brassard for the night and set a captain’s example, scoring a brace. He is now level on 10 goals with Gignac, but leads the table thanks to his four assists to APG’s one. Nice’s goal, by the way, came from Grégoire Puel, for once freed from defence and playing in a more advanced role. Coincidence? I think not. When will Papa Puel let his little eaglet spread his wings?

Behind Lyon are Bordeaux, who won their second Garonne derby (Garronico?) in a week, struggling a little more than in their Coupe de la Ligue win, before overcoming Toulouse 2-1, les Girondins’ first coming from long-lost Marc Planus, in his first appearance of the season.

Two of the more intriguing-looking matches of the weekend ended in 1-1 draws. First Lille failed to win for a fourth straight game after sharing the points with Saint-Etienne. The match will be remembered for two excellent penalty saves, first by Ruffier (making amends for going laughably walkabout for Lille’s goal), then by Enyeama to ensure les Dogues didn’t lose a match which they mostly dominated. Then Nantes and Rennes shared the spoils in the Breton derby. Nantes will be frustrated to drop two points; Rennes never looked likely to match last year’s 3-0 win, particularly without Paul-Georges Ntep, suspended after his midweek handbags with Brice Dja Djédjé. 1-1 was also the final score at Monaco as Benjamin Moukandjo came back to haunt his old team with a late equaliser for Reims, who are unbeaten in four.

Metz recovered from throwing away a two goal lead to grab a late, late winner, as Florent Malouda’s penalty secured a 3-2 win over Caen, les Grenats’ first in four. Metz move up to eighth, just ahead of Montpellier, for whom Kevin Bérigaud scored his first goal, almost inevitably against former team Evian, as La Paillade won 2-0, their first win at their temporary home in the city’s rugby stadium. Evian remain the lanterne rouge, propping up Claude Makelele’s Bastia, who lost a relegation six-pointer, 1-0 at Guingamp, as Jocelyn Gourvennec’s men bounced back impressively from last week’s 2-7 humiliation to jump off the bottom of the table and up four places.

This week’s player of the week, for responding to being booed off in his last home match by scoring two and getting the match-winning penalty, is Metz’s Modibo Maiga. Joining him in the Matchday 12 XI are:

Goals of the Week

In third place is Jean Calve’s perfectly struck freekick versus Metz, lifting the ball up and over the wall and beyond Carrasso’s despairing dive. Juninhoesque.

In second place is Raphael Guerreiro’s opener for Lorient. A sweeping length-of-the-pitch move which ended with a beautiful piece of control from Jordan Ayew followed by a cute pass to the underlapping Guerreiro, who beat Sirigu from an impossible angle.

This week’s winner is Alexandre Lacazette. Receiving the ball thirty yards out, his first touch beat one defender, he moved left, turned, cut to his right, fast footwork accounted for two more defenders and, as a fourth approached, he hit a powerful shot past Hassen and just inside the far post. His second wasn’t too shabby either!

Tune into @FrenchFtWeekly and @FFW_Live for live coverage of Matchday 13, which includes another Breton derby as Rennes host Lorient, but which is all about Sunday night’s biggie – PSG vs Marseille. It’s kind of a big deal…