The week in Ligue 1: sunglasses, fire extinguishers, flares and firecrackers

That was not the only confrontation in French football this week. Emmanuel Emegha, the Strasbourg forward who will be joining Chelsea at the end of the season, was the pantomime villain during their Europa Conference League match on Thursday night. Emegha is injured and was not even in the squad for the defeat to Rayo Vallecano but he made himself the centre of attention. Despite a lacklustre display, which essentially signalled an early end to Strasbourg’sseason, the fans gave the team a warm reception. There was even a twee “thank you” banner unfurled by the Kop.

Cheers turned to jeers, though, when Emegha entered the scene. The Dutchman’s perceived arrogance has soured his relationship with the fans. The announcement of his impending move to Chelsea was untimely, given that he had just been handed the captain’s armband. The rift deepened when he said he had initially thought Strasbourg was in Germany, that he helped put the club on the footballing map, and that poor performances against Ligue 1’s big-hitters could be attributed to his absence.

His demeanour and outfit did not go down well with the crowd on Thursday night. “He stands in front of the Kop wearing sunglasses even though it’s 11pm. You’re the captain of Strasbourg, you don’t turn up like that,” said former France international goalkeeper Mickaël Landreau. Diego Moreira tried to diffuse the situation but, when met with Emegha’s reluctance to walk away from the confrontation, he returned to the dressing room. “We know Emanuel’s situation at the club. I just wanted to avoid a larger conflict,” said the left-back. “I just didn’t want to add more problems.”

Strasbourg have plenty of them. Gary O’Neil has stood by his decision to prioritise cup competitions as a means of qualifying for Europe next season. But, having bowed out of the Coupe de France and the Europa Conference League in the semi-finals, the club will not be returning to Europe next season.

There is a big summer ahead. “We have to improve the culture around the club, the quality of the players, and the depth of the squad,” said O’Neil after their 1-1 draw with Angers on Sunday. “We messed up in the January transfer window. We weakened instead of improving the squad.” The Englishman said he was “angry” with his players but not as angry as Bastia were with theirs.

Bastia’s match against Le Mans was abandoned in second-half stoppage time due to trouble in the stands. Photograph: Pascal Pochard-Casabianca/AFP/Getty Images

Bastia’s match against Le Mans in Ligue 2 on Saturday night did not even reach completion, with firecrackers and flares thrown on to the pitch. At the time of the abandonment, in injury time at the end of the second half, Le Mans were 2-0 up. The result was about to send Le Mansup and Bastia down. The result will be confirmed on Wednesday by the league.

Bastia are one of only seven French clubs that have played in a European final, but their relegation to Ligue 3 will be confirmed soon. It will be the first time since 1965 that no Corsican side has played in the top two divisions of French football. The other giant of the island, Ajaccio, are building back after suffering bankruptcy last year; they have just been promoted to the Régional 1, the sixth tier of French football.

In what was a melodramatic week in French football, filled with jokers and pantomime villains, the decline of Bastia – and Corsican football more generally – is a sporting catastrophe.

Talking points

PSG are serenely – but not spectacularly – on their way to a fifth straight Ligue 1 title. Désiré Doué’s excellent drilled shot from outside the box was the only moment of quality as they beat a resilient Brest side 1-0. PSG still have to play second-placed Lens this week, but the six-point gap, coupled with a significantly better goal difference (+15), means their focus has already turned to the Champions League final against Arsenal. On Sunday, Luis Enrique spoke of “individually preparing” his players for the match at the end of the month. One thing is for sure: PSG will be better rested than Arsenal when they meet in Budapest.

Nantes’ relegation was confirmed after their 1-0 defeat to Lens, but the relegation playoff spot is all to play for going into the final day. Auxerre beat Nice on Sunday to go above them in the table on goal difference. On the final day, Nice face Metz, who have already been relegated, while Auxerre travel to Lille. Nerves will be jangling at Ineos, who are hoping to sell the club this summer. Relegation, just one year after qualifying for the Champions League, would slash the club’s value.

This is an article by Get French Football News