Placeholder canvas

Bessat hat-trick ousts league leaders Lyon from Cup

Date:

French league leaders Lyon’s hopes of the domestic double this season ended on Tuesday as a hat-trick by Vincent Bessat gave Ligue 1 rivals Nantes a 3-2 victory in a thrilling round of 32 French Cup clash.

The 29-year-old — who was born in Lyon — scored the winner two minutes from the end of normal time to book the ‘Canaries’ place in the last 16.

France international Lacazette had given Lyon the lead in the fifth minute but Bessat struck twice in three minutes later in the first-half to put the hosts in front.

Lacazette had benefited from a glaring error by Nantes central defender Koffi Djidji, who was making his first appearance of the season.

Bessat, though levelled with a rasping left-footed shot that beat Lyon ‘keeper Anthony Lopes in the 19th minute after being set up by Ismael Bangoura.

Minutes later Lopes was beaten by Bessat again as the Lyon defence opened up for the winger.

Lyon, however, got back on level terms thanks again to an error by the unfortunate Djidji as he was caught out by the run of Nabil Fekir, who ran on to a ball delivered by Lacazette to score with just over half an hour remaining.

Nantes, though, were not to be denied and Georges-Kevin Nkoudou’s cross picked out Bessat at the back post and he delivered a stunning volley to win the match.

Earlier the team that Lyon beat to win the 2012 French Cup Quevilly produced another famous exploit as the fourth division French side claimed the scalp of Ligue 1 side Bastia, holding their nerve to prevail 3-1 on penalties after the match finished 1-1 after extra-time.

The round of 32 continues on Wednesday with the feature match French champions Paris Saint Germain playing Bordeaux where defeat for the Paris club would heap the pressure on coach Laurent Blanc.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Share post:

Subscribe

Popular

More like this
Related

IPL 2024: Gaikwad’s 98, Deshpande’s Four-Fer Help CSK Return To Winning Ways

SRH struggled to find rhythm and partnerships in their chase of 214. Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma started expectedly, straightaway targeting the boundary rope

IPL 2024: Jacks’ Century, Kohli’s 70 Lead RCB To Comfortable Win Over GT

The RCB openers Faf Du Plessis and Virat Kohli started off the chase magnificently. Both batters put on a partnership of 40 runs in just 22 balls

“People Can Talk About Their Assumptions Day In, Day Out”: Kohli Gives Fitting Reply To His Strike-Rate Critics

The Narendra Modi Stadium witnessed a boundary-hitting spectacle from Kohli and Will Jacks as RCB raced to a 9-wicket win with 24 balls to spare against Gujarat Titans

Cyber Frauds: How Can Indians Protect Themselves From Cybercrimes

Fraudsters can use the cyber world to gain access to victims’ identity, their online accounts and their bank accounts