L1: Four contenders fight for a place on the podium

The already intense race for Europe took a surprising twist over the weekend. By beating PSG Saturday night in the Coupe de France final, Stade Rennais directly qualified for next season’s Europa League - thus snatching another direct spot from Ligue 1 Conforama after the one taken by Coupe de la Ligue winners Strasbourg. As a result, only the top four club will be in Europe during the 2018-19 campaign.
Match Day 34th saw the direct fight between LOSC, OL, ASSE, OM intensify. Marseille came out the worst for wear by dropping a 2-1 decision to Nantes and falling five points behind fourth-place Saint-Etienne, while trailing third-place OL by eight. Second place, which will qualify directly for the Champions League, will in all likelihood be decided between Lille (68 points, +31) and Lyon (62 points, +15), who must also fight keep a spot on the podium also coveted by Les Verts. The suspense only gets higher as the season winds down...