Lemoine the hero for Rennes as PSG slip up

Midfielder Fabien Lemoine proved the unlikely hero for Rennes on Saturday as he marked his return four months after having a kidney removed by setting up the winning goal in a 1-0 success over Valenciennes.

Lemoine came on as a late substitute to a standing ovation from his home crowd with minutes to go and delivered the corner which perfectly found the head of Jean-Armel Kana-Biyak to secure a victory three minutes into extra time.

The win moves Rennes into third place in the French league equal on 31 points with leaders Lille, who host Nancy on Sunday, and second-placed Paris Saint Germain, who were held 2-2 at Parc des Princes by Monaco.

The 23-year-old Lemoine was forced to have his kidney removed in September after it was split following a heavy blow to his side during a league game.

“It’s one of the greatest days of my life,” he said. “Even if I wasn’t on for very long, five minutes, it was a magical moment.

“It’s a great feeling. There was a lot of emotion when I returned to the pitch.

“The main thing was to get the three points. Everything is going our way.”

PSG slipped up in their bid to go provisionally top after a late goal from Monaco’s Daniel Niculae ensured a 2-2 stalemate in a snowy Parc des Princes.

The hosts had looked on their way to victory when a double from Brazilian forward Nene either side of the break pulled them ahead after Sebastien Puygrenier had opened for the Principality side after 31 minutes.

But Romanian striker Niculae levelled two minutes from time to leave PSG level on 31 points but behind Lille.

The standings could however be thrown array on Sunday with title rivals Marseille and Lyon each hoping to strike a telling blow when they meet.

Lyon, two points behind the leading trio, are the division’s in-form team and have not lost in the league since a 1-0 defeat at the hands of local rivals Saint-Etienne on September 25 – a run of 10 matches.

In stark contrast, Marseille are on a three-game winless run and go into the Stade Velodrome showdown two points behind their rivals in fifth.

Elsewhere, Saint-Etienne moved up to fifth with a 2-0 win over tailenders Arles-Avignon, with Toulouse rising four places to eighth after a 3-0 success over Lorient.

Montpellier were held 1-1 by Auxerre with Brest coming away with a 1-1 draw from Nice as Lens’ match against relegation rivals Caen was pushed back 24 hours because of bad weather.