OSC Lille entertain Bayern in the Champions League this Tuesday. The French side have yet to register a point in Group F and are also out of sorts in their domestic Ligue 1, although coach Rudi Garcia’s men visited fourth-placed Girondins Bordeaux on Friday evening, and came away with a hard-earned and morale-boosting point.
Poland international Ludovic Obraniak handed the home side an 18th-minute lead, seemingly enough to seal a fourth win of the season and send Girondins up to second overnight, but Lille’s Marko Basa equalised in the second minute of stoppage time. “This point is as valuable as a win,“ declared Garcia, whose team now have 11 points from nine matches and occupy a mid-table berth.
However, the Spanish coach was not happy with his side’s performance. “There were a number of things I didn’t like,” continued Garcia, bemoaning his players’ lack of aggression and determination at times. Bordeaux were the better team for the full 90 minutes but failed to capitalise on their superiority, and were ultimately punished at the death by Basa. The sweet taste of the last-gasp rescue act turned sour afterwards when it was revealed the goalscorer had broken his nose and is now rated doubtful for the Bayern clash.
Valencia down Bilbao
There were more late goals in Valencia, where the home team scrambled a 3-2 victory over Athletic Bilbao on Saturday night, registering their third win of the season. Aritz Aduriz twice handed the Basque visitors the lead in the first 45 minutes, Roberto Soldado cancelling out the first from the spot midway through the half. The closing stages at the Mestalla were packed with drama. Tino Costa levelled the scores two minutes from time, before former Bundesliga star Nelson Valdez struck an unlikely last-minute winner. Valencia are up to eighth in La Liga with 11 points from eight games.
Borisov march clear
Five days after a shock cup exit, BATE Borisov resumed their winning ways in the league. The Belarus champions visited promoted Slavia Mozyr on Thursday and edged the clash 2-1. Evgeni Kuntsevich (20) and Dimitri Mozolevsky (43) scored for Borisov, before Sergei Irkha ensured a tight final 20 minutes by pulling one back for the home team. BATE held on for an 18th league victory of term and the 100th win as coach for boss Viktor Goncharenko. Borisov lead the standings by ten points with only five games to play.
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