Kombouaré off to a winning start with new club as Paris FC beats Nice. Marseille hosts rival Lyon

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PARIS (AP) — Veteran coach Antoine Kombouaré got off to a winning start with his latest club as Paris FC picked up a much-needed 1-0 home win against Nice on Sunday.

The 62-year-old former defender is at his 10th club as coach, with Paris Saint-Germain, Lens and Nantes among his former teams. He was hired last Sunday. Four years ago, Kombouaré saved Nantes from relegation and won the French Cup.

Zimbabwe midfielder Marshall Munetsi scored midway through the first half for Paris FC, which was promoted last season and moved up to 14th place in Ligue 1, with Nice dropping to 15th.

“The victory is beautiful because it was built on suffering and pain. Nice caused us a lot of problems; we were sometimes on the limit, but we didn’t crack,” Kombouaré said. “This match was about recovery, about redemption, about fightback, because the squad was traumatized and weakened by the 5-0 (home) defeat against Lens (two weeks ago).”

Paris FC has tough away trips next at Lyon and Strasbourg.

Veteran striker Ciro Immobile, the Italian league's top scorer in the 2019-2020 season with Lazio, is still seeking his first goal for Paris FC after joining during the winter transfer window.

Later Sunday, fourth-placed Marseille hosted third-placed Lyon, which saw its 13-game winning run ended last weekend. Five points separated the teams before kickoff.

No Lyon fans were allowed at Stade Velodrome due to the risk of fan violence. There have been violent clashes between rival fans in previous seasons.

The last time visiting fans were allowed at the fixture was in late 2023, when the Lyon team bus was attacked and then-coach Fabio Grosso suffered a head injury.

Three days after scoring the decisive goal in extra time to qualify Lille for the last 16 of the Europa League, defender Nathan Ngoy grabbed a stoppage-time winner as Lille beat struggling Nantes 1-0 to stay in fifth place. Nantes is 17th.

After a corner from the right was helped on three minutes into added time, Belgian defender Ngoy controlled the ball before shooting past goalkeeper Anthony Lopes for the first French league goal of his Lille career.

Lille coach Bruno Genesio waited until the 74th minute to bring on veteran striker Olivier Giroud.

The 39-year-old Giroud scored the opening goal and kept playing in extra time as Lille won 2-0 at Red Star Belgrade on Thursday in the Europa League playoffs to advance to the knockout stages.

Rock-bottom Metz lost 1-0 at home to Brest, which had left back Daouda Guindo sent off midway through the first half. Imposing striker Ludovic Ajorque grabbed the winner midway through the second half.

With Metz staring another relegation in the face, supporters have had enough.

The club’s two main Ultras groups — Horda Frénétik and Gruppa Metz — held a protest march before the game, calling for a proper long-term plan for the club.

Senegal striker Bamba Dieng scored two first-half goals as Lorient twice came from behind in a 2-2 home draw with Auxerre. Defender Marvin Senaya scored in the first minute and Haiti forward Josué Casimir got the other Auxerre goal.

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