AS Monaco have moved back into second in the Ligue 1 table courtesy of a 2-1 victory over Marseille at the Stade Louis II this evening.
The hosts' only previous win in their last six league games had come away to champions Paris Saint-Germain, but they ended a two-match losing streak courtesy of goals from Bernardo Silva and Andrea Raggi this evening to leapfrog Lyon in the standings.
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Both sides had sights of goal in the opening exchanges as Lucas Ocampos fired off target for the visitors before Jeremy Toulalan couldn't keep his effort from a tight angle down, but clear-cut chances were hard to come by in the opening half-hour.
Lacina Traore did have the ball in the back of the net for the hosts midway through the half, only to be denied by the offside flag as neither side managed to trouble the scorers in the first period.
That changed within two minutes of the restart, however, as Monaco came out flying for the second half and opened the scoring through Silva's strike.
Danijel Subasic finally had his first piece of action shortly before the hour mark, but it was a routine stop for the Monaco keeper as he kept out Michy Batshuayi's shot.
Marseille threatened again moments later, though, and again it was Batshuayi who had the effort, but this time he couldn't keep his header down.
Things began to liven up in the final 20 minutes as both sides went for the game's all-important second goal, with Florian Thauvin testing Subasic moments after Helder Costa had fired a left-footed effort narrowly off target at the other end.
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The hosts soon put the game to bed, though, as Raggi doubled their advantage with 15 minutes remaining to give his side a cushion over their out-of-form visitors.
Marseille did pull a goal back in the third minute of injury time through Batshuayi, but it was too little too late for Michel's side as their winless streak in Ligue 1 extended to 10 matches, leaving them still just seven points above the relegation zone.
Barney Corkhill
