“Kévin Cabral broke the deadlock for Red Star, converting a chance assisted by Balthazar Pierret to give the hosts an early lead following sustained home pressure.”
Pivotal“Ibrahima Baldé restored parity for Rodez with a left-foot finish, cancelling out Cabral's opener and ensuring the visitors went into the break level despite Red Star's dominance.”
Pivotal“Mathis Magnin put Rodez 3-1 ahead just six minutes after Escartin's 61st-minute opener, the third goal in under ten minutes leaving Red Star shell-shocked and the game effectively beyond them.”
Pivotal“Wilitty Younoussa, introduced as a substitute just three minutes earlier, scored immediately to make it 4-1 — the decisive blow that killed the contest and capped a stunning four-minute passage of play for Rodez.”
Pivotal“Giovanni Haag was shown a red card deep in stoppage time, compounding a wretched evening for Red Star and leaving the hosts with a numerical disadvantage heading into their final fixtures.”
Red Star
Rodez
Red Star dominated the ball for large stretches — holding 63% possession, completing 561 passes at 85% accuracy and generating 55 dangerous attacks — yet it was Rodez who left Saint-Ouen with three points thanks to ruthless efficiency and a stunning burst of second-half goals. The hosts looked in control after Ibrahima Baldé's equaliser restored parity at 1-1 going into the break, before Josué Escartin edged Rodez ahead on the hour. What followed was a remarkable four-minute spell between the 67th and 69th minutes: Mathis Magnin made it 3-1, then substitute Wilitty Younoussa — on the pitch for barely three minutes — added a fourth to effectively end the contest. Balthazar Pierret pulled one back for Red Star late on, but the home side's failure to convert their territorial dominance into goals proved costly, while Rodez's clinical counter-attacking and the impact of their substitutes was the story of the night. Giovanni Haag's red card in stoppage time summed up a miserable closing period for Red Star.
How entertaining was this match?
Giovanni HaagRed CardGiovanni Haag receives a red card.
Tairyk Arconte takes a left-footed shot but misses.
Samy Benchama comes on for Jordan Correia.
Wilitty Younoussa takes a left-footed shot but misses.
Hacène BenaliYellow CardHacene Benali receives a yellow card.
Bradley DangerYellow CardBradley Danger receives a yellow card.
Ibrahima Balde takes a right-footed shot, but it's saved.
Mathis Saka comes on for Alexis Trouillet.
Kenny Nagera replaces Ibrahima Balde.
Wilitty YounoussaYellow CardYellow card issued to Wilitty Younoussa.
Pape Meissa Ba comes on for Ryad Hachem.
Saif-Eddine Khaoui comes on for Dembo Sylla.
Theo Magnin replaces Kevin Cabral.
Nolan Galves takes a right-footed shot but misses.
Wilitty YounoussaWilitty Younoussa scores with a right-footed shot.
Mathis MagninMathis Magnin takes a shot with his right foot and scores.
Wility Younoussa is on, and Octave Joly is off.
Ryan Ponti is on, and Jean Lambert Evans is off.
Balthazar PierretYellow CardBalthazar Pierret receives a yellow card.
Hacene Benali comes on for Jovany Ikanga.
Giovanni Haag comes on for Matthieu Huard.
Josué EscartinJosue Escartin takes a shot with his right foot and scores.
Ryad Hachem takes a right-footed shot but misses.
Kevin Cabral takes a right-footed shot, but it is saved.
Jordan Correia takes a right-footed shot but misses.
Ryad Hachem takes a left-footed shot but misses.
The first half ends with the score at 1-1.
Kevin Cabral takes a left-footed shot but misses.
Ibrahima BaldéIbrahima Balde takes a left-footed shot and scores.
Ibrahima Balde scores with a left-footed shot.
Ibrahima Balde takes a right-footed shot but misses.
Ibrahima Balde takes a header, but it misses the target.
assist: Taïryk Arconte
Goal! Ibrahima Balde scores, bringing the score to 1-1.
Kévin CabralKevin Cabral scores with a header.
assist: Damien Durand
Goal! Kevin Cabral scores to make it 1-0, assisted by Balthazar Pierret.
Balthazar Pierret's header is saved.
Octave Joly's right-footed shot is blocked.
Kick-off! The referee is Guillaume Paradis.
Red Star and Rodez head into Tuesday's Ligue 2 clash locked on 58 points apiece, separated only by goal difference with the season approaching its climax. With both sides sitting in the promotion playoff places, this is as high-stakes as second-tier football gets — a derby atmosphere wrapped in a six-point swing.
