Ligue 1 McDonald’s, Matchday 1, 17/08/25Lille OSC arrived at the Stade Francis Le Blé to face Stade Brestois as a work in progress. Bruno Génésio handed out six debuts to his Lille side, while Er...
Ligue 1 McDonald’s, Matchday 1, 17/08/25
Lille OSC arrived at the Stade Francis Le Blé to face Stade Brestois as a work in progress. Bruno Génésio handed out six debuts to his Lille side, while Eric Roy needed to make only one, with Radoslaw Majecki replacing Aston Villa’s Marco Bizot in goal.
The Match
Eyes were firmly on Olivier Giroud ahead of this game, and the 2018 World Cup winner did not disappoint. In the 11th minute, he already had the ball in the back of the net. The Frenchman pointed to where he wanted the ball, and debutant Félix Correia delivered. Giroud didn’t bother taking a touch; he simply fired low and found the back of the net.
It would shortly be 2-0 after a clumsy passage of play from the hosts saw Hugo Magnetti play a hospital pass to Brendan Chardonnet. The Brest captain, already marked by Hákon Arnar Haraldsson, tried to play the ball forward but was intercepted by Haraldsson. The Icelandic international took the invitation and sprinted, arriving in the box and firing home.
Despite the score, Lille looked nervous in defence, and Brest capitalised on their inability to clear their lines following a cross from Romain Del Castillo. Ludovic Ajorque and Mama Baldé kept the attack alive long enough for the ball to find Kamory Doumbia from a deflected shot. The midfielder from point-blank range couldn’t miss and halved the deficit.
Génésio was forced into an early change at the break after Marius Broholm picked up a knock and could not continue, with Matias Fernandez-Pardo coming on. The situation would get worse when Ousmane Touré (only on the pitch because of injuries to all of Lille’s three right-backs) needed treatment.
The game wasn’t stopped to Génésio’s chagrin, and Brest took advantage. Brest attacked down Touré’s wing, with Baldé’s marauding run forcing Benjamin André to cover for the injured full-back. Baldé slipped a cross to Doumbia, who powered his shot past Özer to level the scores. Touré would be replaced shortly after by the 17-year-old Maxima Goffi.
Ngal’ayel Mukau would return the lead to Lille in controversial circumstances. The midfielder scored off a corner from Haraldsson, but after the ball hit the back of the net, the whistle was blown. The assistant had raised his flag as Haraldsson took the corner, and players on both sides had stopped in confusion. Initially, the goal was ruled off, but following a review, no infraction was seen, and the goal was given to the fury of Brest.
Brest’s sense of injustice fuelled them forward, with Kenny Lala finding Le Cardinal with a long ball. The centre-back controlled the pass with his chest and then struck his shot on the bounce. It was an exquisite goal, but one that put more focus on a ropey Lille defence.
The substitute Ayyoub Bouaddi almost landed the finishing blow for Lille OSC in injury time, but his shot was saved by Majecki. Neither club would be able to find the winner, and an end-to-end game would finally come to an end, as Brest and Lille delivered the first draw of the 2024/25 season.
Brest Player Ratings
Radoslaw Majecki – 4
It wasn’t Radoslaw Majecki’s best performance. The goalkeeper had some good moments, but was ultimately beaten quite easily for all three goals. More will be expected from the Polish international in the coming weeks.
Bradley Locko – 4
Brendan Chardonnet – 4
Julien Le Cardinal – 6
Kenny Lala – 6
Hugo Magnetti – 4
Pierre Lees-Melou – 5
Kamory Doumbia – 8
The headlines will go to Olivier Giroud but make no mistake that the man of the match was the 22-year-old Kamory Doumbia. The pressure was on for the Mali international to step into the void left by Mahdi Camara, following the midfielder’s departure to Stade Rennais, and he looks as if he is poised to take his chance.
Mama Baldé – 7
Ludovic Ajorque – 6
Romain Del Castillo – 7
Lille Player Ratings
Berke Özer – 4
A nervous first start for a player who has only been a Lille player for three days. Better performances will be expected, especially once he’s got some experience getting to know his teammates. There were some promising saves, but also a lot of questionable decisions.
Romain Perraud – 6
Alexsandro – 4
Nathan Ngoy – 4
Ousmane Touré – 3
A really difficult afternoon for a player who spent last season on loan in the Championnat National with Valenciennes. He looked out of his depth at this level, which makes sense considering he’s the fourth-choice right-back. However, he’s still only 20 and will hopefully be given the time to grow gradually rather than being thrown in at the deep end.
Benjamin André – 5
Ngal’ayel Mukau – 5
Félix Correia – 5
Hákon Arnar Haraldsson – 7
Marius Broholm – 4
Replaced by Matias Fernandez-Pardo (5) at the half-time break after he picked up a knock during the first period.
Olivier Giroud – 7
He’s back. A great performance leading the line for Les Dogues. He looked threatening throughout the game. It’s perhaps a bit worrying that the club have not yet got an alternative striker lined up as the 38-year-old’s influence did begin to wane as the game wore on.
Category: General Sports
