Angers (AFP)

Despite some real opportunities, Angers failed to raise their heads on Friday, losing 2-0 to Lille, under the eyes of club president Saïd Chabane, indicted Wednesday for aggravated sexual violence.

With this victory, Lille continues its good streak and temporarily rises to the level of Rennes, which receives Brest on Saturday and remains 3rd only thanks to a better goal difference. After the victories against Strasbourg then Rennes these last days, it is "a magnificent week" for the trainer Christophe Galtier, who however refuses to speak about podium at this stage.

Especially since the Mastiffs, who receive Marseille in eight days, saw their striker Victor Osimhen come out at the end of the match on a stretcher, victim of a muscular injury to a thigh and replaced by the Argentinian midfielder Nicolas Gaitan, last recruit of Lille.

Dashing in the first part of the season to the point of spending more than a month on the podium in the fall, Angers remains blocked at a provisional 13th place. With the exception of its first rounds of the Coupe de France against Dieppe (N3) then Rouen (N2), the club has not won since its good performance on December 21 in Nantes (2-1).

But to these sporting difficulties were added the legal setbacks of President Chabane, who had brought stability and efficiency to the club since 2011 but was accused of sexual assault on four employees or former employees.

- "It touches us" -

"The players, the staff, all the people who make up the staff are not robots or machines. Obviously we are affected," admitted Stéphane Moulin. "The players are exhausted, tired, me with it. We are close to our president, the president is close to his players and the staff and it touches us," added the SCO coach.

In addition, Lille was "not the right opponent to be able to hope to do something given all this," he said. "We came across a team that is far superior to us (...) I have nothing to reproach the players for, they gave the maximum of what they could give".

As against Monaco on Tuesday (1-0 defeat), the Angevins were picked cold by the opening of the score at the start of the match: on a recovery from Gabriel Magalhaes who left Vincent Manceau on the ground, Lille launched a counter- quick attack under the public whistles, concluded by a lob on the base of Victor Osimhen's foot, well served by Jonathan Bamba.

First refused for offside, the goal was validated after intervention by distance arbitration (0-1, 14th).

Dominated in midfield and often clumsy in their passes or controls, Stéphane Moulin's players have conceded many chances from Jonathan Bamba (35th, 82nd, 90 + 4) or Loïc Rémy (51st) not converted thanks to goalkeeper Ludovic Butelle .

The Lille finally made the break on a counterattack in which Luiz Araujo served Renato Sanches, who scored with a low shot between the legs of Butelle (0-2, 75th).

© 2020 AFP