Lyon have lost their penultimate Ligue 1 round away at Monaco (2-0). Goals from Takumi Minamino and skipper Denis Zakarian have ensured Adi Hütter’s Monegasques have qualified for the Champions League. Indeed, AS Monaco – like Olympique de Marseille – are certain to finish no lower than third in the Ligue 1 standings. The three French clubs to qualify for Europe’s premier club competition are Ligue 1 champions PSG, Marseille and Monaco.

Ligue 1’s fourth place offers a ticket for the Champions League third qualifying round. This season, Lille OSC – who finished fourth the season before – had to defeat José Mourinho’s Fenerbahçe and then Slavia Prague in the playoffs to qualify for the league phase. As it stands, four Ligue 1 teams can still finish fourth. Nice, Lille and Strasbourg are level with 57 points each. Only the goal difference separates Nice (+19) from Lille (+15) and Strasbourg (+13).

As for Lyon, they are further back. Gones are seventh in the Ligue 1 standings with 54 points, and their hopes to qualify for the lucrative Champions League are slimmer than ever. They need to beat Angers at home on Saturday and hope Nice, Lille and Strasbourg all lose their last remaining game. It may not even be enough as Gones need to take the upper hand on goal difference. They are only two goals short of fourth-placed Nice, but their 3-point deficit now looks detrimental at this stage of the Ligue 1 campaign.

Furthermore, Nice, Lille and Strasbourg will all play their final game at home against lower-placed opposition. The Aiglons will host Brest. Lille will host Reims and Strasbourg will host Le Havre. Lyon look set to contend with either the Europa League or the Conference League. They might not even qualify for European football altogether should they finish seventh, and if Reims get the upset in beating PSG in the Coupe de France final.

Tezz | Bastien Horse