Ligue 1- Nimes 3 Marseille 1- Match Report
Promoted Nimes get the better of Marseille with a deserved 3-1 win
Newly-promoted Nimes humiliated their distinguished southern neighbours Marseille 3-1 on Sunday to maintain their fairytale start to life back in Ligue 1.Goals from Denis Bouanga, Sada Thioub and Renaud Ripart earned last season's Division Two runners-up a famous scalp in their first home game in the French top flight since the 1992/93 season.
And it came a week after they opened with a 4-3 win at Angers which has lifted the side with the lowest Ligue 1 budget into the unlikely position of second in the fledgeling table, level on points with the wealthiest team in the league, Paris Saint-Germain.
As if this embarrassing loss wasn't punishment enough for Marseille coach Rudi Garcia he suffered another blow when his World Cup-winning keeper Steve Mandanda had to come off with an apparently injured thigh.
Bouanga stunned Garcia's men when he fired the former employers of Eric Cantona into a 34th-minute lead, Mustapha Diallo supplying the assist from the left. The Stade des Costieres erupted in celebration to mark the club's first Ligue 1 goal scored at home in 25 years. The Le Mans-born Gabon international was inking his name in the club's history just a month after joining from Lorient.
Nimes was in front until four minutes after the restart when Florian Thauvin stylishly completed a move against the run of play begun when Valere Germain intercepted a Nimes freekick.
Parity lasted until after the hour when Bouanga was at the heart of a counter finished off by Thioub who rounded Mandanda to tap into an empty net. Marseille's hopes of salvaging something took a hit when Mandanda came off, with Yohann Pele coming on in the France World Cup winner's place.
Ripart rounded off a magical evening for Nimes three minutes from time to leave Marseille already lagging three points off PSG.