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[ad_1] PARIS: Marseille lost ground in the race for automatic Champions League qualification after a 0-0 stalemate at Lorient in Ligue 1 on Sunday, while Monaco blew a two-goal lead to draw with French Cup finalists Nantes. Cengiz Under forced a good save from Lorient goalkeeper Vito Mannone in the first half but Marseille struggled to create chances as their eight-match winning run away from home ended. "It's disappointing. The match was within our grasp but we were a bit lacking when it mattered most," Marseille midfielder Matteo Guendouzi told Prime Video. Former Marseille striker Bamba Dieng went close to scoring against his old club but was denied by Pau Lopez on the hour as Igor Tudor's side dropped two points behind second-placed Lens. "There's no pressure, there's still a lot of matches," said Guendouzi. Marseille also missed the chance to further distance themselves from Monaco, who were held 2-2 at Nantes earlier in the day.

[ad_1] PARIS: Marseille were dumped out of the French Cup in the quarter-finals in sensational fashion on Wednesday as the tournament favourites lost 7-6 on penalties at home to second-division outsiders Annecy after a 2-2 draw at the Velodrome. OM were strongly fancied to go all the way and win the competition after beating Paris Saint-Germain in the previous round, but instead they went out against opponents who had never previously reached the quarter-finals. Jordan Veretout had Marseille in front at half-time after opening the scoring on his 30th birthday, but Annecy equalised early in the second half through young Ivorian striker Moise Sahi. Defender Kevin Mouanga then headed Annecy in front, and the home side squandered a chance to equalise when Alexis Sanchez had a penalty saved, a spot-kick that had been awarded for handball following a VAR check. Yet Marseille, the 10-time French Cup winners, did equalise in the 96th minute when a cross by teenage substitute Franc