Valenciennes beats Rennes 3-0, PSG wins at Sochaux

Nov 1, 2009 - 10:25 PM By SAMUEL PETREQUIN AP Sports Writer

PARIS(AP) -- Paris Saint-Germain ended a five-match winless streak in the French league that stretched back to August with a 4-1 victory at Sochaux on Sunday.

PSG, whose match last week against Marseille was postponed because of a swine flu outbreak in the Parisian team, moved up to 10th in the standings after its first win since beating Lille 3-0 at home on Aug. 30.

Midfielder Jeremy Clement broke the deadlock in the 35th minute, scoring his second goal this season from the rebound after striker Mevlut Erding saw his penalty parried by Teddy Richert. The goalkeeper had conceded the spot-kick for a foul on Peguy Luyindula.

Following a neat one-two with Christophe Jallet, Clement Chantome increased PSG's lead in the 56th minute with a chip over Richert. Former Sochaux player Erding, back from a shoulder injury that had sidelined him more than two months, then pounced from close range in the 78th minute from a cross by Jallet.

Stephane Dalmat scored a consolation goal for Sochaux with a 20-metre strike in the 85th, two minutes before Luyindula slid the ball under Richert for PSG's fourth.

Earlier Sunday, Valenciennes won 3-0 at Rennes to climb to sixth in the table.

Goals from former Celtic defender Bobo Balde, Fahid Ben Khalfallah and Gregory Pujol secured a third consecutive win for Valenciennes, which has the best attacking record in the league with 22 goals. The club has 19 points from 11 games.

"I think that Rennes is a better team but they were a bit weaker than usual," Valenciennes coach Philippe Montanier said.

The 34-year-old Balde, who joined Valenciennes last month as a free agent until the end of the season, headed home in the 58th minute from a free kick after being left unmarked in the box.

Ben Khalfallah doubled the lead with a powerful strike after eluding two Rennes players in the 78th and Pujol rounded off the scoring in the 85th minute.

"This is a humiliation," Rennes coach Frederic Antonetti said. "We left them too much space. If you want to play a major role in the league, it's impossible to lose 3-0 at home."

Having thrashed seven-time champion Lyon 4-1 last week, Nice maintained its good form with a 1-0 win against struggling Le Mans, which was reduced to 10 men when Brazilian defender Geder was sent off for elbowing striker Mamadou Bagayoko in the 16th minute.

Nice defender Ismael Gace headed the winner five minutes before halftime after Le Mans goalkeeper Didier Ovono misjudged the flight of the ball from a corner.

Bordeaux extended its lead at the top of the standings on Saturday by beating Monaco 1-0, defender Marc Planus scoring the winner in the second half.

Lyon moved up to second with 23 points, two behind Bordeaux, with a 1-0 win at local rival Saint-Etienne after two consecutive league losses. Third-place Monaco has 21 points.

Marseille lost ground on Bordeaux after drawing 1-1 at home with Toulouse.