Rate it!

0 votes

A controversial freekick by Juninho and a stoppage time penalty by Karim Benzema earned Olympique Lyon a 3-2 Ligue 1 home win over Nice.

The visitors led 2-0 after 20 minutes through goals from Habib Bamogo and Loic Remy before Juninho reduced the gap with a first trademark freekick six minutes before the interval.

The Brazil midfielder scored the equaliser after 73 minutes when his launched set piece from the halfway line found the back of the net.

The referee awarded the goal although his assistant had raised his flag indicating Lyon striker Frederic Piquionne was offside.

The same assistant intervened again in stoppage time when Nice defender Vincent Hognon handled in the box and Benzema converted for his fifth goal in five games.

In heavy rain, a reshuffled Lyon team - starting without returning France players Benzema, Jeremy Toulalan and Sidney Govou - earlier conceded their first goal of the season after just three minutes when Bamogo scored from a counterattack.

Former Lyon striker Remy then made it two 17 minutes later with a deflected shot before Juninho and Benzema snatched the win for the seven-time consecutive champions.

"We managed to stay calm while we felt Nice were getting nervous after our first goal," Juninho told French television channel Canal Plus.

Lyon, who take on Fiorentina in their Champions League opener on Wednesday, have 13 points from five games, three ahead of Olympique Marseille and Grenoble.

Marseille could join them at the top of Ligue 1 if they end a 31-year wait for a win at last year's runners-up Girondins Bordeaux later on Saturday.

In other games, South Korea Park Chu-young scored his first goal in Ligue 1 to help Monaco to a 2-0 over FC Lorient.

Reuters