Ligue 1 McDonald’s, Round 22, 14/02/2026
On Valentine’s Day, the City of Love was true to its name for visiting RC Lens as they comfortably dispatched Paris FC 5-0.
Paris Saint-Germain’s loss to Stade Rennais didn’t change the task for Lens, but it did change the outcome. Lens headed into this weekend knowing that they would need to defeat Paris FC, but a win would now allow them to go top of the Ligue 1 table.
There were some early signs of nerves at the back for Lens when Ilan Kebbal found Marshall Munetsi unmarked in the box. However, the Wolverhampton Wanderers loanee couldn’t release the ball from underneath his feet.
The early nerves would soon be brushed aside as Florian Thauvin found the back of the net, but it was ruled out as Wesley Saïd was offside in the build-up. Saïd would spend the rest of the half making amends as he registered a first-half brace.
His first, scored in the 24th minute, was set up by Odsonne Édouard, when the striker laid off Matthieu Udol’s cross for Saïd to finish. His second in the 38th came in similar circumstances as Saud Abdulhamid’s cross found him alone in the box, where he could smack the ball home to score his 10th of the season.
It was bad news for Lens, who are experiencing a growing injury crisis (with Jonathan Gradit, Kyllian Antonio, and Samson Baidoo all in the medical bay), when Mamadou Sangaré went down off the ball early in the second half. He was replaced by the teenager Andrija Bulatović.
What followed was a fairly tepid affair. Lens had the two-goal lead and looked happy to sit back and let Paris move the ball without much purpose. A rare attacking foray by Lens was rewarded when Abdulhamid was brought down in the box by Otávio. Florian Thauvin stepped up to the spot and put Lens out of sight.
Still, Lens almost made it four when Udol found Édouard unmarked. The striker couldn’t get a clean touch on the ball as he chested it wide off the posts, in what would be his final involvement in the game. Down the other end, Ilan Kebbal would test Robin Risser from outside the box, but it was all too comfortable for a goalkeeper who had the ball at his feet more than in his hands.
There would be time for Lens to score their fourth and fifth as Rayan Fofana scored a brace off the bench. The teenager’s fellow substitute, Allan Saint-Maximin, would set up both of his 90th-minute goals, as their fresh legs tore apart a defense desperate to be rescued by the final whistle.
Robin Risser, 6
Malang Sarr, 7
Ismaëlo Ganiou, 7
Nidal Čelik, 6
Matthieu Udol, 7
Adrien Thomasson, 7
Mamadou Sangaré, 7
Pierre Sage will be hoping that his injury isn’t serious. He’s such an important player for this Lens side as the bedrock of defensive stability that allows the rest of the team to fly forward. It’s no surprise that it took his teammates a while to warm up after his exit.
Saud Abdulhamid, 8
The Saudi Arabian international likely wouldn’t have started tonight if not for Ruben Aguilar’s suspension. However, he filled in perfectly for the former AS Monaco man. He looked lively attacking down the right of the pitch, assisting the second, before he won the penalty for the third.
Wesley Saïd, 8
What a season the former Stade Rennais man is having. He’s never been a prolific forward, but under Pierre Sage, he’s struck a rich goalscoring vein. He was instrumental in making this a comfortable evening for Les Sang et Or with his first-half double.
Odsonne Édouard, 6
Florian Thauvin, 6
Otavio, 2
Marshall Munetsi, 3
Ilan Kebbal, 4
Ciro Immobile, 3
