Yilmaz saves Lille in spectacle; Botman from hero to schlemiel in 29 minutes

Sunday, August 8, 2021 at 7:06 PM• Mart van Mourik • Last update: 19:11

Lille OSC escaped defeat on the first day of matches in Ligue 1. For a long time it looked as if FC Metz would win on their own field, but in the seventh minute of injury time Burak Yilmaz equalized: 3-3. Sven Botman played the entire game and provided the opening goal, but at the start of the second half he was mainly responsible for Metz’s 3-1 score.

The opening phase of the Stade Saint-Symphorien was not a feast for the eyes for the neutral spectator, as it took until the 23rd minute before the first big chance was created. That opportunity immediately resulted in a goal. Yusuf Yazici reached Botman from a corner from the right, who was excellently positioned and scored the opening goal with a placed, diagonal header: 0-1. After just under half an hour of play, Metz, who was little less than the reigning national champion, tied the score.

Thomas Delaine had a nice deep pass in the house on Fabien Centonze, who left goalkeeper Léo Jardim without a chance with an excellent header: 1-1. Before half time, the home team also scored the 2-1. It was a breeze for Matthieu Udol to find the bottom right corner on the advice of Ibrahima Niane. After the break, the decision seemed to fall, when Botman had a negative role to play.

The Dutchman was beaten up to speed by Centonze, after which the center defender made a sliding tackle as a last resort. With the sliding he seemed to pass his own goalkeeper, but the Metz striker finally got the goal after a light touch. Then Lille came all the way back into the game. After a serious violation, Boubakar Kouyaté was sent off with a red card by referee Eric Wattellier, after which the visitors started to catch up. Ten minutes before the end of the official playing time, Jonathan Ikoné scored the connecting goal on a pass from Isaac Lihadji: 3-2.

Despite the under-count situation, Metz seemed to get the win, but nothing turned out to be less true. In the absolute final minute of the match it was Yilmaz who stood up. The Turkish veteran made room for the shot and nicely scored the 3-3.