PLAYER RATINGS | Lens 0-2 Lille: Les Dogues leave it late in bad-tempered Derby du Nord | OneFootball

Ligue 1 McDonald’s, Round 9, 26/10/2024

Lille OSC’s exceptional week continued as they followed up a comeback victory over Atlético de Madrid in the Champions League with a 2-0 win in the Derby du Nord over RC Lens thanks to two late goals from Jonathan David and Mohamed Bayo.

The Match

Lille burst forward in the first play of the game when Osame Sahbraoui’s cross found Edon Zhegrova unmarked in the box. The Kosovan winger has been a thorn in Lens’ side in recent seasons but his volleyed effort couldn’t stay low enough to threaten Brice Samba’s goal and went out for a goal kick.

From that point, Lens looked to control the game by keeping hold of possession and when the hosts lost the ball they were quick and aggressive as they counter-pressed. The game plan was clearly to minimise the amount of time that Lille had to think on the ball meaning that their creative players struggled to get a foothold into the game.

Les Sang et Or should have taken advantage of their dominance in the first half. However, M’Bala Nzola struggled to provide the cutting edge that would reward them with an opening goal. The striker’s decision-making was questionable throughout the first 45 minutes, and he often ended up choosing the path that would lead Lens’s attack into a dead-end.

Lille came out in the second half with far more purpose and Jonathan David was provided with his first opportunity of the game in the 49th minute. The Canadian striker had cut an isolated figure in the first half as Kevin Danso shepherded him out of the game but he was finally able to spark a shot which glanced wide.

The hosts had held on strong for most of the game limiting their rivals to only a scattering of chances. However, in a moment of pressure in the 73rd minute, David was given two opportunities to fire his shot at Samba’s goal. Lens’ defending was desperate as they flung bodies in the way which did just enough to obstruct and prevent Lille from finding the net.

There would be one final twist in the tale for the first of the four Ligue 1 derbies this weekend in added time. Danso was caught out in the penalty area when he was spotted by the referee handling the ball in the area. VAR advised the referee to check the screen, but he kept to his onfield decision. David stepped up to the spot and with an almost chipped effort curled his shot into the right-hand corner leaving Samba rooted to the spot.

Three minutes later in the 90+11th minute and Lille would double their lead. Mohamed Bayo capitalised on the transition as Lens threw players forward. The substitute striker strode up the pitch with David to his side, however, he decided to take the opportunity and fired at Samba. The goalkeeper got a touch on the ball but there was enough power to cross the line and secure a 2-0 victory.

The final whistle blew and tempers that had been bubbling at the surface finally blew as the Lens substitutes strode onto the pitch to confront their neighbours.

Lens Player Ratings

Brice Samba – 5

Jonathan Gradit – 5

Kevin Danso – 5

An unfortunate decision for the defender as it looked like there was not much he could do about the handball and seems harsh when he had been such an effective presence in limiting David for so much of the game. However, it was a mistake which would cost Lens the game and their status as the only undefeated team in Ligue 1.

Adukodir Khusanov – 6

A good performance on the left of the back three. He was useful at keeping Edon Zhegrova quiet during the match and often prevented the winger from having any time on the ball to make a decision or to build up momentum.

Facundo Medina – 6

The centre-back by trade was played by Will Still in a defensive midfield role. He was excellent in this capacity. He was like a terrier in front of the defence, as his aggressive energy worked to disrupt and frustrate the opposition.

Anass Zaroury – 5

Andy Diouf – 5

Adrien Thomasson – 6

Przemysław Frankowski – 5

Florian Sotoca – 4

M’Bala Nzola – 3

The summer loanee from Fiorentina had very little luck in the derby. The forward struggled to make the right decision. He had a brilliant opportunity in the first half to open up a shooting chance for his strike partner Sotoca but decided to try and force an angle for his own shot. It worked to waste the chance.

Lille Player Ratings

Lucas Chevalier – 6

Gabriel Gudmundsson – 5

Alexsandro – 6

Bafodé Diakité – 5

Thomas Meunier – 5

Benjamin André – 5

André Gomes – 6

Osame Sahraoui – 5

Angel Gomes – 5

A difficult game for the England international even if it wasn’t necessarily a bad performance. He had a couple of flashes of inspiration where he was able to unlock the Lens defence, but these were too few and far between. He was substituted midway through the second half.

Edon Zhegrova – 4

The winger was largely limited by a great performance from Khusanov. He had two good chances to open the scoring for Lille and delivered the ball that triggered the penalty. However, his shot was left wanting and his performance was in general not quite a the level that he normally displays.

Jonathan David – 5

After a game-changing substitute appearance against Atlético de Madrid during the week there were high hopes that Lille’s dangerman would be the difference maker in the derby… and this ended up being true even if his performance wasn’t what he would have liked. Lens were able to nullify his threat entirely during the first half and were effective at limiting him during the second meaning that he looked isolated throughout the game. Still, his penalty was the moment that won the derby.

GFFN | Nick Hartland