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PARIS: Defending champion Paris Saint-Germain and Lyon are the only sides to have won all their games heading into the fourth round of matches in Ligue 1.
Not many observers would have expected Lyon to start this well, having avoided relegation to the second tier for financial irregularities after a successful appeal and being obliged to sell key players to balance the books.
Veteran striker Olivier Giroud’s Lille side is the only other unbeaten side so far. Lille used to be known more for its defending but has the most goals with 11.
Key matchups
A home game for Marseille against promoted Lorient would not usually stand out, but Marseille are already under pressure after losing two games.
Marseille have long been known as a club with some of the most passionate supporters in France, but fans can quickly turn on players.
The season began with a player crisis after star midfielder Adrien Rabiot was involved in a locker room fight with forward Jonathan Rowe after a defeat to Rennes.
Both players have since been sold, but Marseille can ill afford another defeat at Stade Velodrome.
Lyon are away to Rennes and must re-define their attack after skillful Georgia forward Georges Mikautadze was sold to Spanish club Villarreal for 31 million euros ($36 million) to offset remaining debts.
Lille host a Toulouse side which conceded six goals against PSG in the previous round of games.
Players to watch
Five years ago, Ilan Kebbal was playing in the third tier of French soccer and searching for a professional contract.
Now he’s the co-top scorer in Ligue 1 with newly promoted Paris FC and has been called up by Algeria’s national team.
The 27-year-old midfielder looks to add to his three goals when Paris FC travel to Brest on Sunday.
Giroud was rested for Lille’s last game — and may wish he hadn’t been since Lille won 7-1 at Lorient — but should return against Toulouse.
The 38-year-old striker will look to link up in attack once again with 20-year-old Belgian forward Matias Fernandez-Pardo, who scored twice against Lorient.
Giroud as teammates with right back Benjamin Pavard when France won the 2018 World Cup.
Pavard is back in Ligue 1 with Marseille following a surprise move from Champions League runner-up Inter Milan and could make his club debut against Lorient.
Out of action
PSG will be missing star forward Ousmane Dembélé and Désiré Doué for the home game against Lens on Sunday.
Both were injured on international duty with France and face several weeks out, leading to an angry rebuke from PSG.
PSG’s criticism of the medical staff prompted a swift response from France coach Didier Deschamps.
Off the field
One of the final acts of ousted French Prime Minister François Bayrou was to oversee the dissolution of a violent supporters group known as Strasbourg Offenders.
A government decree on Monday described how the Strasbourg Offenders committed repeated acts of violence and “incitement to hatred or discrimination against people on the basis of their origin,” the decree read, concluding that “this group is derived from the neo-Nazi hooligan movement.”
Bayrou and Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau announced that the 30-strong group has been disbanded, meaning they can no longer attend home matches at Stade de la Meinau.