PARIS (AP) — Loan signing Ethan Nwaneri scored a fine goal early into his club debut as Marseille beat Lens 3-1 to creep tentatively back into the Ligue 1 title race on Saturday.
Marseille’s victory ended Lens' 10-game winning streak in all competitions and stopped the northern side from reclaiming top spot from Paris Saint-Germain.
Third-placed Marseille moved five points behind Lens and remained seven behind PSG before their clash at Parc des Princes on Feb. 8.
A day after joining on loan from Premier League leader Arsenal, the 18-year-old Nwaneri took just 13 minutes to score. The way the winger took the goal validated Marseille coach Roberto De Zerbi's decision to put him straight into the starting lineup.
Collecting the ball in midfield, Nwaneri drifted effortlessly past a player by cutting inside to the left, and then calmly curled a pinpoint shot from 20 meters into the bottom corner.
The highly rated Nwaneri became the youngest player in Premier League history at 15 years, 181 days when making his debut for Arsenal in September 2022. Last season, he scored nine goals for The Gunners in 37 games overall.
His goal made it 2-0 at a vibrant Stade Velodrome after Amine Gouiri netted in the third minute, swapping passes with Brazilian Igor Paixão before clipping the ball over the goalkeeper’s head.
United States winger Tim Weah set up Gouiri's second goal of the game with a first-time cross from the right in the 75th as Marseille's league-high goal tally reached 44 in 19 games.
Rayan Fofana pulled a late goal back but France winger Florian Thauvin was ineffective for Lens against the club where he scored 86 goals across two spells.
Monaco kept a rare clean sheet but could not score in a 0-0 draw at Le Havre.
Mid-table Monaco leaked goals in losing seven of the past eight league games, and was hammered 6-1 at Real Madrid in the Champions League on Tuesday. The club's Ultras have stopped encouraging the players during games and want chief executive Thiago Scuro to leave amid reported concerns over last summer's transfer deals and physical preparation.
The performance was more disciplined this time but Monaco's injury problems mounted.
Central defender Wout Faes, who only just joined on loan from Leicester as cover for Mohammed Salisu, limped off with a left ankle injury in the 29th minute. He was replaced by former Tottenham and Bayern Munich defender Eric Dier, who was injured and replaced by Jordan Teze in the 70th.
Lorient followed up last Friday's 3-1 win at Monaco with a 2-0 victory at Rennes in the Brittany derby.
Midfielder Jean-Victor Makengo scored after three minutes with a low shot and striker Pablo Pagis wrapped things up with a close-range finish approaching the end.
PSG needed a late goal to scrape a 1-0 win at struggler Auxerre on Friday.
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Lens' Adrien Thomasson, left, challenges for the ball with Marseille's Ethan Nwaneri during the French League One soccer match between Marseille and Lens in Marseille, France, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Philippe Magoni)
Marseille's Amine Gouiri, right, dribbles past Lens' Saud Abdulhamid, center, and Lens' Ismaelo Ganiou during the French League One soccer match between Marseille and Lens in Marseille, France, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Philippe Magoni)
Marseille's Ethan Nwaneri celebrates as his teammate Marseille's Amine Gouiri scores his side's second goal during the French League One soccer match between Marseille and Lens in Marseille, France, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Philippe Magoni)
DENVER (AP) — Sean Payton conceded he will have second thoughts about his decision to pass up an easy field goal, as well as the play he called instead.
The Denver Broncos and their fans now have the entire offseason to argue over which part of that critical fourth-and-1 play was worse.
Because Payton decided not to kick a chip-shot field goal for a 10-0 lead in good weather in the first half of Sunday's AFC championship game against the New England Patriots, the Broncos ended up needing to make a kick once the blowing snow and wind rolled in after halftime. The decision played an integral role in Denver's 10-7 loss.
“There’s always regrets,” Payton said. “I felt like here were are, fourth-and-1, close enough — it’s also a call you make based on the team you’re playing and what you’re watching on the other side of the ball. Yeah, there will always be second thoughts.”
That fateful move put the Broncos on a slippery slope that would’ve challenged any quarterback — to say nothing of perennial backup Jarrett Stidham.
Everyone from Bill Cowher on the pregame show to Tony Romo in the broadcast booth was talking about the importance of the Broncos taking every point they could with Stidham stepping in for the injured Bo Nix, but Payton didn’t heed that advice.
Wil Lutz missed two field goals (one was blocked) on a day Denver's defense gave up one touchdown. And that score was set up when Stidham turned the ball over deep in New England territory.
Had Denver not given away three points, it may have been able to overcome those mistakes.
“There will be a number of things when we watch the tape I will look at and critique and pay close attention to,” Payton said. “It was a hard-fought game, and we didn’t do enough to win.”
Early in the second quarter — and with the skies still clear — the Broncos led 7-0 and faced fourth-and-1 at the New England 14. Denver called timeout to discuss its options. The offense returned to the field and Stidham's pass to RJ Harvey fell incomplete.
“Just didn’t work out on that one play,” said Stidham, who threw for 133 yards and a score, along with a fourth-quarter interception that sealed the win for the Patriots. “That’s just football.”
Late in the game, trailing 10-7, Payton sent Lutz out to try a 45-yard kick into a tricky wind and on a snow-covered field. Leonard Taylor III got a hand on the kick.
“Unfortunately, you couldn’t see the lines on the field and honestly I think we might have been a yard short on the snap,” Lutz said. “But you can’t see the lines on the field and we had to kind of estimate.”
The Broncos were right there, too. Only three teams have won a game to advance to the Super Bowl while scoring 10 points or fewer — and the Broncos were on the wrong end in two of them. They also lost 10-7 to the Buffalo Bills in the 1991 AFC title game, with backup quarterback Gary Kubiak replacing the injured John Elway.
This time, Stidham started in place of Nix, who broke his ankle in a 33-30 overtime win against Buffalo last week, and began in stellar fashion. He had a 52-yard completion to Marvin Mims Jr. that set up a short TD pass to Courtland Sutton.
Denver was rolling — until New England's fourth-down stop.
Late in the second quarter, the Patriots took advantage of Stidham's first turnover. Under pressure from Christian Elliss, he tried to toss the ball away but it was ruled a backward pass, which was recovered by Elijah Ponder. Two plays later, Drake Maye sauntered into the end zone.
“Obviously, I can't put our team in a bad position like that,” Stidham said. “That was completely on me.”
The play was initially ruled an incomplete pass and intentional grounding, but officials changed the call. Stidham did not realize he'd thrown a lateral.
“No, I thought I'd thrown it forward,” he said.
Explained referee Alex Kemp in a pool report: “I initially ruled it as a forward pass, which was incorrect. I proceeded to go through the administration of an intentional grounding foul. The down judge and the umpire came and talked to me and provided more information. The down judge explained that he extended his right arm to signal that he had a backward pass and at that point we determined that New England had picked up the then backward pass.”
Stidham conceded that he “should’ve just eaten the sack anyway,” adding, “I can’t do that.”
With the snow picking up and the wind at their back, the Patriots went on a 16-play drive to start the third quarter that ended with Andy Borregales' go-ahead, 23-yard field goal. That was the final score by either team in the deteriorating conditions.
“I was dealing with it. Drake was dealing with it,” Stidham said of the snow and wind. “You can't really make an excuse of it.”
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL
Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton and New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel meet after the AFC Championship NFL football game between the Denver Broncos and the New England Patriots, Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Denver Broncos quarterback Jarrett Stidham leaves the field after the AFC Championship NFL football game between the Denver Broncos and the New England Patriots, Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Denver Broncos quarterback Jarrett Stidham (8) runs against the New England Patriots during the second half of the AFC Championship NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton speaks during a news conference after the AFC Championship NFL football game between the Denver Broncos and the New England Patriots, Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/Garrett W. Ellwood)
Denver Broncos kicker Wil Lutz (3) misses a field goal attempt against the New England Patriots during the second half of the AFC Championship NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
