Nice and Monaco are stepping up, but Lille isn’t backing down. The northern French team showed a response after a disappointing loss to struggling Le Havre last week, and with their 2-0 victory over Rennes in the 22nd round of Ligue 1, they kept pace in the race for a Champions League spot with those same teams.FULL-TIME: Rennes 0-2 LOSCA PERFECT EVENING 😍LOSC wins thanks to goals from Bentaleb and Akpom!It’s time to celebrate the triumphant return of Nabil Bentaleb ❤️🩶#SRFCLOSC pic.twitter.com/ozBsUe19Jn— LOSC (@LOSC_EN) February 16, 2025 Bruno Genesio’s side struggled to break through the barrier at the home team’s goal, named Brice Samba, and it’s questionable whether they would have succeeded without Nabil Bentaleb! The somewhat forgotten former great talent of Algerian football, who in just four minutes not only became Lille’s hero but also won the title of “winner of the day” in the football world!The experienced midfielder, whose career was revived with impressive performances at Angers after a noticeable decline earlier in the decade, had to temporarily quit football in July last year due to heart problems, which kept him off the field. This hero even had to face doctor’s predictions that were far from optimistic, with some suggesting he might never play football again.It’s great to have you back, Nabil! https://t.co/kXrpeoqk8W pic.twitter.com/BECr9XFrTI— LOSC (@LOSC_EN) February 14, 2025 But today, after more than eight months, he returned to the pitch and marked his comeback in the best possible way—with a goal, his first since April 2023! The 30-year-old Algerian reacted to a rebound off a corner and placed the ball into the net from three meters—more than enough to bring a smile back to Bentaleb’s face and help Lille secure a crucial victory after struggling for 80 minutes to find the breakthrough. To make the story even better, the Algerian player was awarded the man of the match trophy.February 16: Nabil Bentaleb’s day 🇩🇿🥹 pic.twitter.com/bVkDukKeFn— Ligue 1 English (@Ligue1_ENG) February 16, 2025 Just three days ago, he was given an emotional welcome back during training when he returned to the club, and with this goal and great performance, he repaid his team and the club that believed in him during the toughest times of his life.LIGUE 1 – MATCHDAY 22FridayBrest – Auxerre 2-2 (0-1)/Ndiaye 60, Ajorque 79 – Perrin 18, 74/SaturdayOlympique Marseille – Saint-Etienne 5-1 (1-0)/Gouiri 27, 60, Greenwood 50 pen, Murillo 58, Rabiot 77 – Stassin 79/Monaco – Nantes 7-1 (2-1)/Biereth 44, 54, 64 pen, Minamino 45, Ben Seghir 49, Ilenikhena 81, 90+5 – Abline 4/Toulouse – PSG 0-1 (0-0)/Ruiz 52/SundayMontpellier – Olympique Lion 1-4 (1-1)/Coulibaly 38 – Mikautadze 3, Nuamah 50, Tolisso 53, Lacazette 73/Le Havre – Nice 1-3 (1-2)/Kechta 28 – Laborde 16, Kinkoue 18 (og), Diop 90+4/Lens – Strasbourg 0-2 (0-0)/Bakwa 81, Emegha 90+6/Reims – Angers 0-1 (0-1)/El Melali 45+1/Rennes – Lille (0-0)/Bentaleb 80, Akpom 86/
