PARIS: Olympique de Marseille ended a four-match winless streak when they beat Girondins de Bordeaux 3-1 to move up to fifth in Ligue 1 with their first home win of the season on Saturday.

Florian Thauvin, Jordan Amavi and a Pablo own goal won the points and put OM on 12 from seven games, three off pacesetters Paris St Germain who won 4-0 at 10-man Nimes on Friday.

Bordeaux, who reduced the arrears through Josh Maja late on, are 10th on nine points after new signing Hatem Ben Arfa failed to make an impact on his debut for his sixth French club.

Marseille had drawn three and lost one since beating PSG at the Parc des Princes on September 13 and Saturday’s result is a welcome confidence boost ahead of the trip to Olympiakos Piraeus in their Champions League opener on Wednesday.

Thauvin opened the scoring for Marseille with a splendid 25-metre strike into the top corner in the fifth minute at the Stade Velodrome.

He was handed a chance to double the lead seven minutes later but opposition goalkeeper Benoit Costil saved the World Cup winner’s penalty after Amavi was fouled.

Amavi stretched the advantage nine minutes after the break as his looping header beat the backtracking Costil.

The full back’s cross was then deflected by Bordeaux’s Pablo into his own net in the 64th before Maja pulled one back for the visitors six minutes from time.

In Saturday’s other match, Lorient moved up to 16th following a 3-1 win at 19th-place Reims, who have yet to win after seven games.

Published in Dawn, October 19th, 2020