News Focus
- RC Lens secure Champions League qualification with a 1-0 victory over FC Nantes
- Sixteen-year-old Mezian Mesloub scores the decisive goal 11 seconds into his professional debut
- FC Nantes suffer a record 20th league defeat and face relegation to Ligue 2
- The match took place at Stade Bollaert-Delelis on Matchday 33 of the Ligue 1 McDonald’s season
- Lens were missing several key starters including Florian Thauvin and Adrien Thomasson
RC Lens will compete in the Champions League next season after a sensational last-minute winner from teenage prodigy Mezian Mesloub. The 16-year-old forward found the net just 11 seconds after stepping onto the pitch for his first senior appearance, securing a 1-0 triumph over FC Nantes that confirmed European football for the Artois side while condemning the visitors to the second tier.
The result marks a devastating blow for Les Canaris, who have now suffered a club-record 20 defeats in a single Ligue 1 campaign. Despite the absence of influential figures such as Saud Abdulhamid, Mamadou Sangaré, Florian Thauvin and Adrien Thomasson, Lens controlled the tempo from the outset under head coach Pierre Sage.
The hosts dominated possession early on but struggled to penetrate a well-organised Nantes defence. Wesley Saïd came closest to breaking the deadlock in the first period with a half-volley that Anthony Lopes parried to safety. The visitors offered little threat going forward, failing to register a single shot on target before the interval.
The second half brought greater intensity. Lopes produced a fine stop to deny Matthieu Udol from a difficult angle, whilst at the other end Robin Risser performed heroics to clear Johann Lepenant’s volley off his own goal line. Lens thought they had taken the lead twice through Saïd, but both efforts were disallowed—first for an offside involving Sima in the build-up, then for handball by the same player as he controlled the ball before beating Lopes.
Nantes should have capitalised on their good fortune when Matthis Abline and Ignatius Ganago broke clear with only Ismaëlo Ganiou standing between them and the goal. However, Abline chose to shoot rather than square the ball to his unmarked teammate, and his effort struck Risser’s left-hand post before bouncing clear.
That missed opportunity proved fatal. With ten minutes remaining, the ineffective Sima—who had struggled in an unfamiliar right wing-back role and lost possession frequently—made way for Mesloub, son of former Lens midfielder Walid Mesloub. The youngster took just 11 seconds to control the ball, drive past a defender and drill a low shot into Lopes’ bottom left corner.
The Bollaert-Delelis erupted in celebration as the teenager wheeled away in delight. Nantes threw everything forward in the closing stages but could not find an equaliser, ensuring their return to Ligue 2 after a disappointing campaign. Lens, meanwhile, can look forward to competing among Europe’s elite next term.