Montpellier boost Ligue 1 survival chances with Nantes win
Montpellier boosted its hopes of remaining in the top flight next season after beating Nantes 2-0 in the French league on Sunday.
With four rounds remaining, the southern club is now six points above the relegation zone.
Montpellier, the last club to take the French title before Paris Saint-Germain's four straight wins, clinched its first victory in six league games with goals from Bryan Dabo and Ellyes Skhiri.
"We still need to play four finals, but we made a big step forward," Montpellier coach Frederic Hantz said. "It's a wonderful and very important win in the final sprint."
Nantes is in 10th place, four points above Montpellier.
Also, Jimmy Briand scored against his former club as Guingamp won 3-0 at Rennes in the Brittany derby. Moustapha Diallo and Younousse Sankhare also scored for the visitors.
Monaco later aims to return to second place with a win against struggling Marseille. The French league's runner-up qualifies automatically for the Champions League, with the third-place team entering the playoffs.
Already crowned champion, PSG thrashed Caen 6-0 on Saturday and has a 30-point lead over Lyon at the top of standings.
