Rennes beats Lyon 2-1 in French league

Paris: Jires Kembo-Ekoko scored the winner as Rennes came from a goal down to beat Lyon 2-1 away and climb to fourth place in the French league on Friday.

The Rennes forward took a pass from Yann M’Vila and steered his shot past Lyon goalkeeper Hugo Lloris in the 53rd minute. Brazilian midfielder Honorato Ederson diverted home a long-range strike from Kim Kallstrom to put Lyon ahead in the 36th. But Rennes equalized three minutes later when Julien Feret played Jonathan Pitroipa in and the Burkina Faso winger beat Lloris. “We’re able to compete with the big teams,” Rennes striker Victor Hugo Montano told the club’s website. “I hope that will give us some confidence for the remainder of the season.” Lyon striker Lisandro Lopez returned from an ankle injury, replacing winger Jimmy Briand in the 61st. But in his first match since the end of August, Lopez had very little impact up front. “We were lucky to open the scoring against a good Rennes side,” Lyon coach Remi Garde told the club’s website. “But we didn’t manage to protect our lead for long enough. We gave them too many opportunities and they were quick on the counterattack.” Rennes went level on points with third-place Lille, which drew 0-0 at Toulouse. Toulouse goalkeeper Ali Ahamada saved a penalty from Moussa Sow in the 52nd minute after Daniel Braaten had fouled Lille fullback Franck Beria. Toulouse nearly scored in the 66th but Franck Tabanou’s volley crashed against the bar. Defending champion Lille stretched its unbeaten run in the league to 12 games but missed an opportunity to put pressure on second-place Montpellier. Paris Saint-Germain tops the standings with a three-point lead over Montpellier. Bureau Report