Ligue 1 round-up: Improved second-half performance earns Neymar top spot
The second round of Ligue 1 matches are done and dusted and there are only four teams left in the division with 100 per cent records. Two of those are newly-promoted, while PSG already now have a three-point advantage over rivals Lyon and Marseille. We run through the best and worst performers from gameweek two.
New PSG head coach Thomas Tuchel is yet to taste defeat and the reigning champions sit top of the league, where they will likely remain for the rest of the campaign. However, there is still much more to come from PSG and they were forced to come from behind to beat Guingamp on Saturday.
Nolan Roux gave the home side a shock lead midway through the first half and it took more than 30 minutes for PSG to respond. Neymar scored his second goal in as many matches, converting from the spot after being fouled by Jordan Ikoko.
The Brazil international has now scored and assisted three goals in two Ligue 1 matches this season and garnered the highest WhoScored rating from the weekend’s action in France (9.22). Not only did Neymar get PSG back into the game, but he also set Kylian Mbappe up for their decisive third goal to complete a 3-1 win away from home.
Neymar struggled to influence the game during the first half but burst into life after the break, with Mbappe introduced from the bench, and finished the match with a five key passes and five dribbles to go with his penalty.
Like PSG, Dijon have also won their opening two matches. After beating Montpellier 2-1 on the opening weekend, Olivier Dall’Oglio’s side followed that up with a 2-0 win over Nantes. Julio Tavares has been a notable performer for Dijon during their first two matches, scoring three of their four goals.
The 29-year-old bagged a brace against Nantes, finding the back of the net with both of his efforts on goal. Tavares also won four aerial duels to help garner a WhoScored rating of 8.72 on Saturday. Tavares wasn’t the only Dijon player to catch the eye this weekend, with right-back Valentin Rosier also scoring an indentical WhoScored rating to round off the three highest WhoScored rated Ligue 1 players from the weekend’s action.
Rosier provided the assist for Tavares second and helped Dijon keep their first clean sheet of the season with three tackles, three interceptions and five clearances. The 22-year-old proved a handy outlet down the right hand side for Dijon, completing more dribbles (4) than any other player on display at the Gaston-Gerard stadium.
While the aforementioned trio impressed, there were others that didn’t. Neven Subotic, for example, was the lowest WhoScored rated player (5.32) from the weekend’s action in Ligue 1 after being sent off after just 18 minutes in Saint-Etienne’s 1-1 draw with Toulouse.
The former Borussia Dortmund defender has proved an astute signing in 2018 but the experienced centre-back was given an early bath by referee Benoit Millot. Saint-Etienne faced an uphill battle from there on out but did at least manage to salvage a point with an 88th-minute equaliser.
