Lyon can retain their French championship on Tuesday evening, but to do so, they must beat bogey team Montpellier for the first time in four seasons. Paul le Guen's team are just a win away from glory, but anything less would let Monaco back in, and the Principality club are flying high after winning the Coupe de la Ligue on Saturday evening, ahead of their clash with Guingamp. Marseille are also in with a slim chance, but would require both their rivals to slip up very badly. The champions currently lead Ligue 1 by three points with just two games remaining, but a repeat of last season's 3-0 defeat at Montpellier could still see them needing a big last day win at home to Guingamp to claim the title on goal difference, if Monaco win their two matches. However, their fate is currently in their hands, even if the players and coach are not willing to dream of glory just yet. "I'm not seeing myself standing on top of a bus celebrating the title in the streets of Lyon like last season," said defender Patrick Mueller. "You should not have dreams that might never happen. I've been through the same situation in Switzerland when our fans were telling us the scores. We missed the title and it's a situation I don't want to live through again." After they beat Paris Saint Germain last weekend, keeper Gregory Coupet warned that they will need to play much better if they do not want to blow their lead at the top: "I am annoyed because I find that we performed poorly and no-one could see the difference between a team fighting for the title and a team ranked in mid-table. We lacked fighting spirit and apart from Sonny's goal, their keeper did not have much work to do. We should not be too fussy because in the end we won, but we should not content ourselves with the minimum. We know that we will suffer at Montpellier. If we play as poorly as we did against PSG we face great disillusionment." "We have not done too well against Montpellier in recent years but every series must end," said Eric Carriere. "And since we're at the end of the season with such a crucial objective ahead, we must forget about the past and our previous encounters." However, Montpellier also have much to play for as they are only a defeat away from possibly getting sucked into the relegation zone. Meanwhile, Monaco's cup win at the weekend was a welcome diversion from the financial troubles circling the club, and casting doubts over the future of coach Didier Deschamps: "It's none of my business. I'm still under contract but if my bosses want me out, I'll go," he said. "But from what I heard, it's far from certain. I hope that the rumours have not disturbed the players. There has been a lot of disinformation but, as far as I'm concerned, I'm already working for next season." Whether they might start next season as champions will depend on Lyon's results more than their own, but Deschamps will want to fight on for as long as possible for his own sake, though his future at Monaco may not have much to do with on-the-pitch performances. There are no such problems for Paul le Guen at Lyon, and he could be celebrating the culmination of a successful first season on Tuesday night if they can finally beat Montpellier.
Half time in all the matches. Guingamp 1-0 Monaco Montpellier 1-1 Lyon One more goal for Lyon would see them win the title if the score stays the same between Guingamp and Monaco.
FT Guingamp 3 - 1 Monaco FT Montpellier 1 - 1 Lyon FT Marseille 4 - 2 Sedan So I guess this means the Championship belongs to Lyon.
1 Lyon 68 37 2 Marseille 65 37 3 Monaco 64 37 4 Bordeaux 61 37 5 Sochaux 61 37 6 Auxerre 61 37 7 Guingamp 59 37 8 Nice 55 37 9 PSG 54 37 10 Lens 54 37 11 Nantes 53 37 12 Bastia 47 37 13 Strasbourg 44 37 14 Lille 42 37 15 Montpellier 40 37 16 AC Ajaccio 38 37 17 Rennes 37 37 18 Sedan 36 37 19 Le Havre 35 37 20 Troyes 31 37 Allez Bordeaux! The race for 4th place heats up... btw, if you want to check live scores, you can always go to http://www.football365.fr/