Juventus get Como shock, Marseille top of Ligue 1

COMO: Nico Paz was again the star for Como with a goal and assist in Sunday’s historic 2-0 win over Juventus which lifted the traditionally tiny club up to fifth place in Serie a day after Inter Milan beat AS Roma 1-0 to grab the top slot as Torino downed Napoli with a similar score line.

Earlier on Saturday, Mason Greenwood scored four goals as Marseille came from behind to hammer Le Havre 6-2 and storm to the top of the Ligue 1 table, while Nice downed Lyon in a clinical display of finishing.

FIRST SINCE 1952 THANKS TO NICO PAZ

Argentina international Paz set up Marc-Oliver Kempf to sweep home in the fourth minute at the Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia, before making sure of Como’s first win against Juve since 1952 with a wonderful individual goal with 12 minutes remaining.

Paz scampered down the right flank before cutting inside Andrea Cambiaso and curling a superb finish past Michele Di Gregorio, a goal which pushed Como above Juve on goal difference.

Owned by tobacco giant Djarum, ambitious Como are on 12 points from seven matches, only three behind the division’s leading trio of Inter Milan, Napoli and Roma.

That gap to the summit will be increased to four points if fourth-placed AC Milan beat Fiorentina in Sunday’s late match and move into top spot.

Paz has been a key start to Como’s strong start to the campaign with four goals and as many assists.

The 21-year-old was bought in August last year from Real Madrid, in a complicated deal which gives the Spanish giants the right of repurchase before 2027.

His fine display on Sunday left Juve without a win since a dramatic victory over arch-rivals Inter just over a month ago.

Igor Tudor’s Juve came into Sunday’s lunchtime fixture unbeaten this season but on a run of five straight draws in all competitions.

A MASON GREENWOOD SHOW

Mason Greenwood scored four goals as Marseille came from behind to hammer Le Havre 6-2 and storm to the top of the Ligue 1 table on Saturday.

Reigning champions and league leaders going into the weekend’s action, Paris Saint-Germain drew 3-3 at home to third-placed Strasbourg on Friday, offering the possibility to rivals Marseille and Lyon to take top spot.

“It’s good,” Marseille captain Leonardo Balerdi told Ligue 1+.

“But we have to continue. It means nothing.”

A sentiment echoed by coach Roberto De Zerbi.

“It’s October 18, not May 18. First place doesn’t count for anything,” the Italian said.

Marseille emphatically took first place thanks to Greenwood and now sit on 18 points, one ahead of PSG.

Yassine Kechta gave 16th-placed Le Havre a shock lead at the Velodrome on 24 minutes.

But the match swung firmly in the hosts’ favour just after the half-hour mark as a penalty was awarded against Le Havre’s Gautier Lloris for handball, with the defender also being sent off after a VAR review upped his punishment from a yellow to a red card.

Greenwood dispatched the resulting spot-kick in the 35th minute to level matters.

The 10 men frustrated Marseille until seven minutes after the hour when Greenwood fired them into the lead with a rifled finish from the right of the box.

That strike opened the floodgates.

The English winger grabbed his hat-trick on 72 minutes with a cute finish, before netting his fourth four minutes later as he swept a cut-back past helpless goalkeeper Mory Diaw with his right foot.

Robinio Vaz made it five for Marseille with two minutes remaining before Le Havre’s Abdoulaye Toure got the pick of the bunch with a thunderous volley that flew into the top corner in the 92nd minute.

Amir Murillo netted one minute later to ensure Marseille’s move to the top of the table ended on a high.

LYON DOWN YET AGAIN

Victory for Paulo Fonseca’s Lyon would have seen them take top spot earlier on Saturday but instead, a frustrating 3-2 loss at Nice condemned them to remain fourth on 15 points.

Lyon assistant coach Jorge Maciel said after the defeat that the side needs “maturity and guile at key moments (in matches)”.

“If we have to score four goals to win in Ligue 1, it’s going to be difficult,” the Portuguese added.

Melvin Bard gave eighth-placed Nice the lead with five minutes on the clock as he fired a fine first-time finish past Dominik Greif after racing onto Sofiane Diop’s inviting ball across the box from the right flank.

The away side levelled just shy of the half-hour when Pavel Sulc nodded in a flick-on from a corner.

Diop restored the hosts’ lead in the 35th minute with what was just their second shot on target of the match.

The danger again came from the right-hand side as a flighted ball was headed back across the six-yard box by Mohamed-Ali Cho and the Moroccan tucked home from a tight angle.

Lyon were awarded a spot-kick shortly after half-time but former Arsenal man Ainsley Maitland-Niles failed to beat goalkeeper Yehvann Diouf from 12 yards as Nice were let off.

The home side immediately took advantage of the reprieve as midfielder Hicham Boudaoui finished a breakaway with an unerring strike that curved away from Greif and into the Slovakian’s far corner on 55 minutes.

Sulc headed in his second of the match for Lyon five minutes into added time, but Nice held firm to see out the three points.

Elsewhere on Saturday, fifth-placed Monaco sit one point behind Lyon after being held to a 1-1 draw at second-last Angers.

AFP