Nigerian International Chuba Akpom scored his first goal for Lille but his side fell to a shocking 2-1 defeat at the hands of Le Havre in the Ligue 1 on Saturday.
Lille were under pressure to secure a win, having suffered an upsetting defeat to Dunkerque in the Coupe De France Round of 16. Meanwhile, Le Havre were looking to finally break their nine-game winless streak in all competitions.
Chuba Akpom began on the bench as manager Bruno Genesio opted for top scorer Jonathan David in pursuit of a convincing victory. However, it was Le Havre who drew first blood, with Ahmed Hassan Koka finding the net in the 38th minute to put the visitors ahead.
In a bid to turn the game around, Bruno Genesio made a triple substitution at halftime, bringing on Chuba Akpom, Ayyoub Bouaddi, and Ethan Mbappe in place of Rémy Cabella, Osame Sahraoui, and André Gomes.
More Read
Nonetheless, Lille’s woes continued in the second half as Le Havre extended their lead in the 56th minute, with Issa Soumaré’s goal leaving the home supporters stunned and disheartened.
Chuba Akpom scored his first goal for Lille with a 97th-minute strike to reduce the deficit, but the goal came too late to spark a revival, as the hosts succumbed to their second home defeat of the season, while Le Havre celebrated their third away victory.
The unexpected defeat saw Lille drop to fifth in the standings with 35 points from 21 matches, now two points adrift of fourth-placed Monaco. Meanwhile, Le Havre’s victory propelled them temporarily above Montpellier into 17th place, with 17 points accumulated from the same number of games.
Reeling from consecutive home defeats, Lille faces a crucial test of resilience as they travel to Rennes for their next match, where a swift response is necessary. Meanwhile, Le Havre will aim to sustain their newfound momentum when they welcome Nice to their home ground.
© Bold Media Innovations & Creative Hub Limited. All rights reserved. If sharing, kindly credit Bold Sports as the source and include a link to the original post. Unauthorised use is prohibited.
