Lens edge Rouen in friendly match following postponement of PSG clash | OneFootball

Wth their match against Paris Saint-Germain having been postponed at the league leaders’ request, Lens instead scheduled a friendly match against third-tier outfit Rouen to keep the squad occupied over the weekend.

The fixture was organised as a show of support for Christophe Gleizes, the French football journalist who is currently imprisoned in Algeria, and part of the proceeds were to go to Reporters Without Borders.

There were several displays of support for Gleizes around the match, with players notably wearing shirts calling for his release during the warm-up. Both sets of players went on to pose for a picture with a message of support, before Gleizes’ mother Sylvie Godard gave the ceremonial kick-off.

The match itself saw a first-choice Lens lineup struggle to break down the Normans, who were also wasteful on the counter in the first half. Having started the second half with more of an incisive edge (and an entirely new lineup), the hosts drew a penalty from a Rouen handball ten minutes after the restart. Wesley Saïd, who has ten goals in Ligue 1 this season, duly converted the spot-kick.

The Artois side would double their lead minutes later, as Andrija Bulatović whipped a low free-kick in from wide which snuck into the bottom corner. The visitors would pull one back fifteen minutes from time, as Valentin Fuss finished off a rapid passing move into a empty net.

GFFN | R. Jucobin in Lens