Monaco move up to second in Ligue 1 after Lorient victory

PARIS --

Monaco moved up to second place in the French league after winning 2-0 at Lorient on Sunday, with both goals coming in an improved second-half performance.

Promising midfielder Thomas Lemar put Monaco ahead with a shot that crashed in off the underside of the crossbar in the 54th minute, and Portugal midfielder Joao Moutinho curled in an excellent free-kick four minutes later.

Lorient played better in the first half but striker Benjamin Jeannot failed to muster a shot on target.

Monaco is two points ahead of third-place Angers but trails runaway league leader Paris Saint-Germain by a massive 21 points. PSG won 1-0 at Toulouse on Saturday thanks to a late header from Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Caen 1, Marseille 3

Marseille moved into the top half of the Ligue 1 standings with a 3-1 win in an entertaining clash against Caen.

OM took an early lead when Michy Batshuayi's effort just made its way over the line before being cleared. The visitors had to wait until the hour mark to double their lead when Georges-Kevin N'Koudou's effort nestled just inside the post from Batshuayi's pass.

Ronny Rodelin offered hope for Caen moments later when he headed beyond a stranded Steve Mandanda, but Bouna Sarr's powerful volley late on was too strong for Remy Vercoutre as Marseille made sure of maximum points.

The result lifted OM one point behind their opponents and within four points of fourth-placed Nice.