Lille Extends Unbeaten Run to 16 Matches after Late Draw with Marseille in Ligue 1

Lille's French defender #18 Bafode Diakite (C) celebrates with teamates after scoring his team first goal during the French L1 football match between Olympique de Marseille (OM) and Lille (LOSC) at Stade Velodrome in Marseille, southern France on December 14, 2024. (Photo by CLEMENT MAHOUDEAU / AFP)

Asharq Al Awsat

06:57-15 December 2024 AD ـ 13 Jumada Al-Alkhirah 1446 AH

Asharq Al Awsat

06:57-15 December 2024 AD ـ 13 Jumada Al-Alkhirah 1446 AH

Lille Extends Unbeaten Run to 16 Matches after Late Draw with Marseille in Ligue 1

Marseille and Monaco, both chasing Paris Saint-Germain, had chances to put the Ligue 1 leader under pressure on Saturday.
Both failed.
Lille equalized against Marseille in the 87th minute, extending its unbeaten run across all competitions to 16 matches, and Monaco was frustrated in a goalless draw at Reims, The Associated Press reported.
Marseille remained second in the standings, ahead of Monaco only on goal difference. The Mediterranean rivals are four points behind PSG, which faces in-form Lyon on Sunday.
Marseille was in the driving seat at Stade Velodrome until Bafodé Diakité leveled for 1-1.
Marseille led after 17 minutes after a well-constructed team move. Following a quick one-two, Luis Henrique passed to Adrien Rabiot down the right. The France international rushed toward the goal and served a low cross for Quentin Merlin, who dummied a defender by feinting a shot then fired in with his left foot.
Diakité's header came from Rémy Cabella's free kick.
Lille's sweet 16 Lille’s string of nine wins and seven draws is the second longest unbeaten run in the club’s history, according to Opta statistics.
“We played a great game and stuck to our plan: Stopping them from building through short passes in the center and then using the flanks and exploiting depth. I think we did that pretty well," Lille coach Bruno Genesio said. "It would’ve been harsh to leave without a point considering how we played. The game plan was followed perfectly.”
Marseille finished with 10 men after Pol Lirola received a straight red card for a dangerous tackle on André Gomes in added time.
Lille was fourth, three points behind Marseille.
In the wake of its 3-0 loss at Arsenal midweek in the Champions League, Monaco struggled at Reims and came close to conceding in the 51st when Oumar Diakité's powerful right-foot shot crashed off Philipp Köhn’s crossbar.
Monaco's best chance came in the 77th when Takumi Minamino had a one-on-one against goalkeeper Yehvann Diouf, only to miss the target. The Japanese midfielder had another effort in added time that flew over the crossbar.
Hampered by injuries, Monaco has been slowing down and showing signs of fatigue in recent weeks, winning just one of its past five matches in all competitions.
“It's disappointing, we came here with the ambition to return to Monaco with three points,” midfielder Eliesse Ben Seghir said. “It has been a difficult week.”
Also, Lens drew at Auxerre 2-2.

Barca Wasteful but Beat Elche to Extend Liga Lead

Barcelona's Lamine Yamal celebrates after scoring the opening goal with his teammate Barcelona's Raphinha during a Spanish La Liga soccer match between Elche and Barcelona in Elche, Spain, Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026. (AP)

08:44-1 February 2026 AD ـ 13 Sha’ban 1447 AH

Barca Wasteful but Beat Elche to Extend Liga Lead

Barcelona spurned some big chances but still moved four points clear at the top of La Liga on Saturday with a 3-1 win at Elche, thanks to goals from Lamine Yamal, Ferran Torres and Marcus Rashford.

Elsewhere third-place Atletico Madrid drew 0-0 at lowly Levante, while Villarreal were also held in a 2-2 draw at Osasuna.

Alvaro Arbeloa's Real Madrid, second, host Rayo Vallecano on Sunday aiming to reduce the gap to the leaders back to one point.

Hansi Flick's Barca created several clear opportunities in an entertaining clash, but the woodwork and some profligate finishing stopped them from securing a far bigger victory.

Elche, 12th, have impressed this season and created good chances of their own at the Martinez Valero stadium, but Barca were too strong for them, despite some poor finishing.

"In the first half you have to decide this game, I like (it more) when the players turn their chances into goals," Flick told reporters.

"We created a lot of chances, but we missed them in front of goal, this is the bad thing, but in the end I told the team I'm happy with the three points and congratulations on this performance."

Teenage star Yamal opened the scoring after six minutes after Dani Olmo sent him through on goal. The 18-year-old coolly rounded goalkeeper Inaki Pena, a former Barca player, and slotted home.

Olmo hit the crossbar before Elche equalized with a well-worked move to get Alvaro Rodriguez in behind Barca's high line.

Torres should have restored the Catalans' advantage but, in a comical moment, hit the bar from point-blank range and then immediately diverted the rebound against the post.

The Spain international made amends by smashing home after fine work by Frenkie de Jong before the break.

Fermin Lopez, Raphinha and Torres all missed good chances for more goals as Barca created danger at will, with Elche coach Eder Sarabia, a former Barca assistant under Quique Setien, sticking with his open style.

Rashford was also guilty of missing a good chance after he came on for Raphinha at half-time, curling past the post as he ran through.

The English winger, on loan from Manchester United, did score Barca's third, his 10th of the season across all competitions, after Yamal's cross was blocked and fell nicely to him.

"Normally we have players who finish very well, maybe in a game you miss your chances, but the important thing is that we're generating them," De Jong told Movistar.

- Atletico, Villarreal drop points -

Diego Simeone's Atletico looked uninspired at Levante as they could only take a point against the team sitting 19th in the table and now lie 10 points behind Barca.

Atletico have won just one game in their last four across all competitions, and in midweek lost against Norwegian side Bodo/Glimt to leave them in the Champions League play-offs instead of progressing directly to the last 16.

"It hurts not to get the three points today," admitted Atletico defender Robin Le Normand.

To make matters worse for Atletico striker Alexander Sorloth and midfielder Pablo Barrios went off injured.

They lost Sorloth after a clash of heads with Matias Moreno and the Norwegian striker was taken to hospital for further tests.

Barrios limped off early in the second half and Atletico, who had started well, struggled to create many openings after that, missing the energetic midfielder.

Simeone, who has pushed for Atletico to sign more players, said the potential injury absences would force him to think about what to do.

"It enhances creativity, the coach's work. As a coach, it's good to be challenged to improve, and this helps me improve," he said.

Gerard Moreno netted twice for Villarreal but they could only manage to draw at Osasuna, unable to capitalize on Espanyol's defeat to fully consolidate their position in fourth.

Marcelino Garcia Toral's side are eight points ahead of fifth-place Espanyol, who lost 2-1 at home against Alaves on Friday.

For a while this season, Villarreal seemed to be on the fringes of the title race, but two defeats and a draw in their last three La Liga outings have diminished those notions.

"We wanted to win but I think we have to leave satisfied, because we got a point after two games without (getting any)," Moreno told Movistar.

Sports

Napoli Edge Fiorentina as Injury Crisis Deepens

Napoli defender Miguel Gutierrez celebrates after scoring the goal with Napoli's head coach Antonio Conte during the Italian Serie A soccer match SSC Napoli vs Fiorentina at Diego Armando Maradona Stadium in Naples, Italy, 31 January 2026. (EPA)

08:41-1 February 2026 AD ـ 13 Sha’ban 1447 AH

Napoli Edge Fiorentina as Injury Crisis Deepens

Italian champions Napoli edged lowly Fiorentina 2-1 in Serie A on Saturday to keep pace in the title race, three days after being dumped out of the Champions League.

Napoli lost 3-2 to Chelsea on Wednesday and 3-0 to Juventus in the league last weekend but bounced back thanks to impressive goals from Antonio Vergara in the 11th minute and Miguel Gutierrez early in the second half.

Staggering under the weight of an injury crisis that includes star midfielder Kevin De Bruyne and striker Romelu Lukaku, Napoli lost captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo to a twisted knee in the first half.

"It's a serious injury, the cruciate ligament," coach Antonio Conte said after the game.

"We're killing these guys, we're killing football... with 60-70 matches per season, it's suicide."

Fiorentina forced Conte's charges to dig in when Manor Solomon pulled a goal back on 57 minutes, but the home team held on for a narrow win with a lively pressing game.

"We'll keep fighting," vowed Conte. "We want to make sure we at least get back into the Champions League."

Inter Milan travel to Cremonese on Sunday and lead the title charge on 52 points, with AC Milan second on 47 ahead of Tuesday's game at Bologna.

Napoli climbed provisionally to third on 46. Roma have 43 ahead of Monday's game at Udinese.

Napoli went into Saturday's game with just one win from their last seven matches in all competitions.

Earlier on Saturday, Pisa lost 3-1 at home to Sassuolo. They have won just one match from 23, but Verona dropped to the foot of the table after a 4-0 defeat by Cagliari.

Sports

‘Quiet Assassin’ Rybakina Targets World Number One After Melbourne Win

Tennis - Australian Open - Women's Singles Winner Photo Shoot - Yarra River, Melbourne, Australia - February 1, 2026 Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina poses with the Australian Open trophy. (Reuters)

08:22-1 February 2026 AD ـ 13 Sha’ban 1447 AH

‘Quiet Assassin’ Rybakina Targets World Number One After Melbourne Win

Tennis - Australian Open - Women's Singles Winner Photo Shoot - Yarra River, Melbourne, Australia - February 1, 2026 Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina poses with the Australian Open trophy. (Reuters)

Elena Rybakina beat the two top-ranked players in the world to win the Australian Open and show that her quiet ruthlessness can propel her to number one and more Grand Slam glory.

The Moscow-born Kazakh emerged from a power battle with top seed Aryna Sabalenka to claim the Melbourne title in three tight sets on Saturday.

The 26-year-old's 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 triumph brought her a second major crown, more than three years after winning Wimbledon.

Two-time Australia champion Sabalenka had her chances, notably leading the final set 3-0, but the fifth seed retained her trademark cool to pull through.

Rybakina later revealed that beneath her understated celebrations was huge relief.

Proving it was no fluke, it was the second time in three months that big-serving Rybakina has beaten the world number one.

She has been the form player on tour since the middle of last year and is set to return to her career-high ranking of three, behind Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek.

Australian media labelled her a "quiet assassin".

"Last year I didn't start that well," said Rybakina, as she eyes a second Wimbledon title in June-July.

"Now it's different. So I just hope that I can carry all this momentum, hopefully do a good job with the team and continue this way throughout the year."

Rybakina's tense victory over Sabalenka, having beaten Poland's second seed Swiatek in straight sets in the quarter-finals, was her 20th win in her last 21 matches.

- 'Big goals' -

Rybakina, who switched to play for Kazakhstan in 2018 because of financial reasons, was tipped for more Grand Slam success after her Wimbledon breakthrough in 2022.

She reached the Australian Open final six months later, facing Sabalenka again.

Rybakina won the first set but the powerful Belarusian struck back to win her first major title in three sets.

There was a Wimbledon quarter-final and semi-final for Rybakina in 2023 and 2024, and she got to the last eight of the French Open.

But her career was hampered by illness and injuries, particularly back trouble, and she has suffered insomnia.

Speaking after beating Sabalenka, she said she was able to enjoy her Australian title more than the Wimbledon one.

"I remember I was not sleeping well, semis, even quarters. Final I don't even... how many emotions and how many thoughts was going through my head," she said on Saturday, looking back to 2022.

"It was really stressful."

Put to her that statistically she has been the best player in the world since Wimbledon in the middle of last year, Rybakina looked almost embarrassed.

"I didn't even know these statistics, to be honest. The reason, I mean, I've been playing well," she said, smiling.

"I have a very aggressive style of game, so I think that's definitely the key.

"I don't know which other answer I can give you."

She was similarly coy when asked if being number one for the first time was on her radar.

"I have big goals. Of course time will show, but definitely we will keep on working," she said.

Lille Extends Unbeaten Run to 16 Matches after Late Draw with Marseille in Ligue 1

Lille Extends Unbeaten Run to 16 Matches after Late Draw with Marseille in Ligue 1

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Barca Wasteful but Beat Elche to Extend Liga Lead

Barca Wasteful but Beat Elche to Extend Liga Lead

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Napoli Edge Fiorentina as Injury Crisis Deepens

‘Quiet Assassin’ Rybakina Targets World Number One After Melbourne Win

‘Quiet Assassin’ Rybakina Targets World Number One After Melbourne Win

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