Two months ago Memphis Depay crashed his last-minute shot past Alphonse Areola to give Lyon a 2-1 win against Paris Saint-Germain and cut the gap at the top of Ligue 1 to eight points. Lyon looked like genuine outsiders for the title and Bruno Génésio seemed to have finally figured out his team. But as Sunday night’s Olympico at the Stade Vélodrome approached, the mood around Lyon had severely darkened.

In the six Ligue 1 games following the win over PSG, Lyon collected just three points and no wins. Monaco and Marseille forged clear in the mad dash for Champions League places and Génésio’s side again capitulated in the Europa League this week, a 3-2 home defeat by CSKA Moscow only surpassed in disappointment by their inept semi-final display in Amsterdam in the same competition last season. Rumours of unrest were underlined by full-back Marçal’s exile from the squad after an outburst against Génésio’s management and the fact that Lyon president, Jean-Michel Aulas, had to deny he refused the coach’s resignation. Losing to a direct rival in Marseille would have ended Lyon’s top three hopes and likely sealed Génésio’s fate.

Lyon were without talismanic captain Nabil Fékir and looked in big trouble when they fell behind to a goal from Marseille centre-back Rolando. It seemed as if Génésio had finally exhausted his many lives, having dangerously skirted the precipice several times before miraculously rescuing himself and his team. However, a curious Adil Rami own goal and a sumptuous curling effort from Houssem Aouar on either side of half time gave Génésio hope once more. Lyon had the lead and had found their rhythm: they were confident in possession and streetwise in their game management; they were nullifying Marseille; and their direct, pacy forwards were finding space.

Memphis Depay celebrates after scoring Lyon’s winning goal. Photograph: Philippe Laurenson/Reuters

These two clubs have a keenly felt rivalry and the atmosphere was intense throughout the game. At times that intensity has gone too far – when Mathieu Valbuena returned to the Vélodrome as a Lyon player in 2015 he was greeted by an unsavoury effigy and could not take corners because of debris flung at him from the stands – but, unacceptable violence aside, the reignited Olympico rivalry is welcome among Ligue 1’s newly established big four. PSG’s dominance and Monaco’s weak home support can occasionally detract from other intense encounters.

With seven minutes to play, Lyon were 2-1 up and looked relatively comfortable – until Kostas Mitroglou scored with a looping header to draw Marseille level. Génésio’s luck was yet to run out, however. With 90 minutes on the clock, Memphis Depay popped up and scored a looping header of his own to give Lyon all three points. Earlier in the week Depay had been asked what he was missing to become the best player in the world. “In terms of my quality, nothing,” he responded. He lacks no confidence and clearly has what it takes in key games. This was his tenth league goal of the campaign.

Tensions descended into outright aggression at full-time as Lyon defender Marcelo gloatingly displayed his shirt to the Marseille fans as he left the pitch, having clashed with Adil Rami just before the final whistle, instigating a brawl in the mouth of the tunnel. Rami’s insistence on again confronting Marcelo between the pitch and the dressing rooms was seemingly caused by what Thauvin described as “Lyon players goad[ing] us, it was not professional on their part. They lacked respect – it is crazy. They will pay for this. They’ll pay for this. The most important thing is the ranking at the end of the season.”

Players and coaching staff argue after the game. Photograph: Anne-Christine Poujoulat/AFP/Getty Images

Marseille are now only two points clear of Lyon in what is a straight fight for third place. While Rudi García deserves credit for moulding his unwieldy Marseille team into an effective attacking outfit and storming into the Europa League quarter-finals, they have also proven weak in games against their top-four rivals this season, taking just two points from six games. The momentum in the race for third may have shifted, with Marseille having European football to contend with and appearing increasingly tired. Garcia admitted his Marseille team “defended badly” and goalkeeper Steve Mandanda added that they “blew themselves up”.

At full-time, Lyon president Aulas insisted: “Yes, Bruno will be the coach at the end of the season. It would be irrational to be deprived of a coach for the last eight games. Lyon are fourth, two points off third. Bruno does a great job – you saw that his players came to greet him.” For his part, Génésio added: “Regarding the top three, you never know what can happen in this sport. I don’t usually draw conclusions 12 matches before the end.” His reign at Lyon may be coming to an end, but Génésio has once again changed opinions about his team and his coaching dramatically. For now, he has stayed death’s hand once more.

Quick Guide Ligue 1 results Show Monaco 2-1 Lille, Bordeaux 0-2 Rennes, Amiens 1-1 Troyes, Angers 3-0 Caen, Montpellier 2-2 Dijon, Toulouse 2-2 Strasbourg, Nice 1-2 PSG, Metz 1-1 Nantes, St Étienne 2-0 Guingamp, Marseille 2-3 Lyon

Ligue 1 talking points

• Nice and Paris Saint-Germain played in the day’s first match on Sunday, with Dani Alves snatching a late winner in a game moved up to function as a showpiece for Chinese audiences. The match served as a fine example of Ligue 1’s quality for China and the rest of the world, as Nice delivered a strong performance, giving as good as they got against the leaders. They are just two points off Rennes in fifth (with the two meeting in three weeks), so European football is still a distinct possibility for Lucien Favre’s side, and despite some occasionally sloppy passages of play, their ambition not only made the match highly entertaining, but showed that despite a disappointing exit from Europe last month, this team has lost none of the spirit it showed last season.

• Angers, after a dismal run in the autumn in which they won just once in 16 matches in the league, continued their improvement of late with a 3-0 win over Caen that saw them move ahead of the Norman side on goal difference. Now on 35 points, Angers are all but safe, and much of that has been down to the good form of Karl Toko Ekambi, who scored again at the Stade Raymond Kopa, his fifth in as many matches. Now on sixteen goals for the season, the Paris-born Cameroon international has set a career high this season and looks likely to follow Famara Diedhiou and Jonathan Kodjia in becoming yet another forward to have blossomed under the tutelage of longtime Angers manager Stéphane Moulin.

• Dijon’s Wesley Saïd was also among the goals on Saturday, earning a point against Montpellier with a late equaliser. A French youth international at every level, the little forward failed to succeed as a striker in Brittany with Rennes, often featuring but rarely starting, but his move to eastern France has coincided with a marked improvement, recording nine goals in the current campaign. Often playing wide on the right, or as a second striker, Saïd has thrived under the attacking philosophy of Olivier Dall’Oglio, and while his renewed verve has not led him regaining his place in the international reckoning, he has become, at the very least, an above-average Ligue 1 player. Still just 22, he also has room for improvement. He is a fine advertisement for the value of being willing to move down a level for the promise of regular playing time.

Ligue 1 table

