Ligue 1 round-up

A thrilling Ligue 1 title race took another dramatic turn as Paris St Germain won a seven-goal thriller at Valenciennes to tentatively take over at the top.

Carlo Ancelotti's richly-assembled PSG squad hung on for an invaluable 4-3 win, to go ahead of Montpellier on goals scored only, having played a game more.

Ancelotti's men were forced to battle back from 2-0 down after Vincent Aboubakar and Remi Gomis notched for Valenciennes inside the opening 11 minutes.

But PSG's reply was even more impressive as they roared into a 3-2 lead before half-time, with Nene, Maxwell and Blaise Matuidi grabbing the goals.

A defining win looked assured when Jeremy Menez added a fourth on 58 minutes but there was further drama as Aboubakar grabbed his second with 10 minutes left.

But PSG managed to cling on for a win that puts the pressure back on Montpellier, who can take over at the top outright again on Monday night, although they face a tricky trip to fifth-placed Rennes.

Huge hit

Lyon's hopes of a top-three finish and UEFA Champions League football took a huge hit with a 1-1 draw at home to relegation battlers Brest.

Yoann Gourcuff gave Les Gones a first-half lead but Brest snatched a point through Gregory Lorenzi's equaliser.

The result leaves Lyon eight points behind third-placed Lille, who will assure themselves of a top-three finish if they beat Caen on Monday.

Ajaccio were plunged into relegation danger as they slipped to a 2-1 defeat at Evian and saw Carl Medjani red-carded late on.

The visitors took the lead through Benjamin Andre, but Cedric Barbosa immediately equalised and Daniel Wass' second-half free-kick earned the three points for Evian, who are set for a top-half finish in their first season following promotion to Ligue 1.

Ajaccio, by contrast, are just three points outside the relegation zone having played a game more than all three teams in the bottom three, and will have to contend with the suspension of Medjani after his frustrated two-footed lunge at Wass.