Nakamura Nets Two as Reims Triumphs Over Lens, Outdoing Former Coach Still

Stade de Reims finally put an end to their seven-match winless streak away from home in Ligue 1 by pulling off a surprising 2-0 victory against RC Lens at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis. This win lifted Reims out of the relegation play-off zone, moving them to 14th place, while simultaneously denting Lens’ aspirations for European qualification.

As anticipated, Lens started strong, putting pressure on Reims from the get-go. In the tenth minute, Yehvann Diouf was tested when Florian Sotoca delivered a clever pass over the visiting defence. Goduine Koyalipou, who was the matchwinner against Saint-Etienne in the previous outing, controlled the ball but was forced wide, resulting in his shot being blocked.

The hosts were dealt a blow midway through the first half when Deiver Machado had to leave the pitch due to injury, making way for the more offensive-minded Angelo Fulgini a few moments later.

Not long after Fulgini entered the fray, Jordan Siebatcheu might have felt he should have made a better impact, as he missed a close-range header from a corner taken by Junya Ito, failing to challenge Lens keeper Mathew Ryan.

Reims took the lead in the 33rd minute following a patient build-up. Sergio Akieme delivered a cross that accidentally rebounded back to him off Lens defender Juma Bah. Akieme seized the opportunity to play the ball back for Keito Nakamura, who expertly guided it into the roof of the net.

Things worsened for Lens as Bah had to be substituted after failing to recover fully from an earlier head injury, with Malang Sarr coming on in his place.

Heading into the second half, Lens manager Will Still would have expected a more convincing attack from his side, especially with the score still very much in the balance. Just after the interval, Sotoca almost delivered an equaliser, but his attempt was blocked by Hiroki Sekine.

The action continued relentlessly, as Fulgini’s cross found Koyalipou, whose header was saved by Diouf, only for Koyalipou to send the rebound over the bar.

Sotoca then came close, hitting the woodwork, followed by a drive from Lens midfielder Andy Diouf that painfully crept across the goal face and wide. Reims faced their own injury dilemma when Amadou Kone had to be replaced by John Patrick in the 64th minute.

Lens kept pushing to find an equaliser after this change, but substitute Wesley Saïd’s poor first touch denied him a goal-scoring opportunity. At the other end, Yehvann Diouf produced a fantastic double save to stop shots from Anass Zaroury and Adrien Thomasson.

In the closing stages, Reims secured the win with a counter-attack, finished off by Nakamura, who scored his second goal of the night. Lens was left to ponder their missed opportunities, while Reims finally broke their 13-match winless drought against their rivals. Meanwhile, Lens finds themselves five points adrift of the top six.