Thauvin drives Lens to winning Ligue 1 start | OneFootball

Match in Five Sentences: Lens beat Auxerre 5-2 to open their Ligue 1 campaign in style. Florian Thauvin converted from the spot in the 12th minute to set the tone. Auxerre went down to 10 when Christ Makosso saw a straight red (35.). Franjo Ivanović doubled the lead (49.) and VAR confirmed Saud Abdulhamid's header (54.), as the hosts racked up nine shots on target from 12 attempts. Danny Namaso's penalty (61.) and Lamine Sy's reply (69.) punctuated the visitors' fightback, but Ismaëlo Ganiou (66.) and a late Thauvin spot kick (88.) sealed it, with Lens visiting Strasbourg next and Auxerre hosting Angers.

Player of the Match: Florian Thauvin decided the contest with two penalties and an assist, hitting three shots on target and winning a late spot kick.

Stat of the Match: Lens produced nine shots on target from 12 attempts, a 75.0% accuracy that underlined their cutting edge.

Three Things We Learned: Thauvin is already joint second in the Ligue 1 scoring chart with two, per the league's latest rankings. Auxerre's straight red for Christ Makosso in the first half left them chasing the game with 10 men. Substitute Michał Skóraś changed the tempo for Lens, supplying an assist and two key passes after coming on.