PARIS: Bordeaux and Lille missed their chance to cut the gap on French league leaders Marseille when they could only manage dull draws on Saturday.

Marseille can move five points clear if they can make it five wins in five matches this campaign with a Sunday success at winless Nancy – though Lyon will expect to keep the margin down to two points by beating Ajaccio at home.

Though they remain unbeaten, Bordeaux, six-times league champions, missed out on the chance to leapfrog big-spending Paris Saint Germain and Lyon after they could only manage a goalless draw at Valenciennes to stand fourth – three points off the pace.

Lille missed a chance to move into the top five when they were also held, 1-1, at Troyes, who thanked a late equaliser from Sebastien Grax for a point which leaves Lille winless since the opening day in the league.

Dimitri Payet had put the northerners ahead in the 38th minute but Grax pegged them back with a neat right-footed effort to frustrate the visitors four days before they take on BATE Borisov of Belarus in the Champions League.

With no Champions League distractions Marseille and Lyon can put the pressure on if they win their Sunday encounters and the riches of Europe’s premier club competition could be a poisoned chalice for the likes of PSG and reigning French champions Montpellier.

At least PSG, with far more strength in depth owing to the huge cash infusion over the last two summers from their Qatari backers, will relish their opening match against Dynamo Kiev after Friday’s 2-0 win over Toulouse, which was their first home victory of the season.

Argentine star Javier Pastore and Swedish international stiker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, with his fifth of the season, were on target for the capital club who remain unbeaten even if performance-wise they remain a work in progress.

In contrast, Montpellier sold France striker Olivier Giroud to their opening European opponents Arsenal, while in the league nothing is going right after Friday brought a third league defeat in five games – a 3-1 reverse at Reims.

Elsewhere Saturday, Sochaux managed their first points of the new term with a 1-0 win at former giants Saint-Etienne, Nice swatted Brest 4-2 in a midtable battle and modest Evian bagged their first win – 3-0 at home to Bastia – to exit the drop zone. – AFP

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