PARIS, Nov 13 — Lens continued their frantic pace to keep the pressure on Paris Saint-Germain on Saturday with a 2-1 win at home against Clermont consolidating second spot in Ligue 1.

An eighth consecutive win at home puts Franck Haise’s side two points behind the champions and five clear of third-placed Rennes who extended their unbeaten run to 17 games with a 2-1 win over Toulouse.

PSG welcome Auxerre on Sunday on the final weekend of Ligue 1 action before the World Cup break.

Ex-Clermont player Abdul Samed turned the goal into his own net to give the visitors the advantage at Lens’ Bollaert-Delelis Stadium.

But Wesley Said picked up a Florian Sotoca cross to pull Lens level after an hour with captain Seko Fofana bagging the winner after 68 minutes to make up for an earlier missed effort.

Haise’s proteges have still not lost a single point at home this season, with an eighth victory in a row in their fortress, to equal the club record for a season as in 1955 and 1961.

Saturday’s win, their fifth consecutive, marks Lens best single-season run since they won seven in a row in 1998, the year they claimed their only Ligue 1 title.

Their last appearance in the Champions League came in 2002-03, when Lens beat eventual winners AC Milan in the group stage and drew with Bayern Munich.

Lens travel to Nice for the first match after the World Cup on December 28 before welcoming PSG in a clash at the top on January 1.

In Brittany, Rennes dominated to ensure they remain third, four points clear of Marseille and Monaco who go head to head on Sunday, and Lorient who travel to Strasbourg.

Bruno Genesio’s team won thanks to a masterful Lovro Majer, who teed up Benjamin Bourigeaud for the first goal after 25 minutes, and played a role in Arnaud Kalimuendo’s second just before the hour, diverting the shot after Toulouse goalkeeper Maxime Dupe had pushed out a Martin Terrier effort.

Rennes notched up their sixth win in seven matches, and are undefeated since losing in Lens on August 27. — AFP