Caen climbed to 14th in the Ligue 1 table this evening after goals from Julien Feret, Emiliano Sala [two] and Herve Bazile gave them a 4-1 victory over visiting Lens.
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Caen went ahead after only seven minutes when Abdoul Ba brought down Sala inside the area, leaving Feret to step up and rifle the penalty into the bottom-right corner.
Sala turned from provider to scorer for Caen's second goal in the 35th minute when he collected a pass from fellow striker Lenny Nangis before firing an unstoppable effort from range into the top corner.
The hosts continued to dominate and found themselves three ahead just one minute later as Bazile tucked into the centre of goal.
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A shocked Lens side pulled one back right before the break through Alharbi El Jadeyaou, who followed up from a missed penalty to give his side a slender chance of salvaging something in the second half.
Caen's victory was cemented with 15 minutes left on the clock as Sala returned to grab a brace, collecting Feret's through ball to finish with his left foot into the centre of goal.
The game was called to a halt in the 85th minute as troubled erupted in the stands, with both teams sent to their dressing rooms as officials attempted to bring things under control.
It took at least 20 minutes for the teams to remerge, with Caen slowing the game down to stroll for the remainder as they eased home to claim all three points on an eventful evening in the French top flight.
Christopher Dodd
