Lens routs Paris FC 5-0 to go top of Ligue 1 and sloppy Marseille drops more points

PARIS (AP) — Marseille was widely expected to be Paris Saint-Germain's main challenger in Ligue 1 this season, but Lens is the team to be reckoned with.

Coach Pierre Sage's unassuming side moved one point ahead of PSG at the top after a crushing 5-0 win at struggling Paris FC, which was promoted last season but is in 16th spot despite big investment.

While Lens celebrated another clinical performance, Marseille’s chaotic week continued with an equalizer conceded deep into stoppage time in 2-2 home draw with Strasbourg.

Marseille is 12 points behind Lens with 12 games left.

Unheralded Lens has won just one league title compared to nine for Marseille and a record 13 for PSG, and has no big-name stars.

Instead, Lens boasts efficient teamwork, self-sacrifice, slick counter-attacking and clinical finishing.

Wesley Saïd is not a household name, other than perhaps in the former coal-mining community of Lens, but the journeyman forward is peaking at the right time. He scored twice to reach 10 league goals for the first time in a season.

He opened the scoring from a cross in the 24th minute and then found the top-left corner with a firm shot from another cross in the 38th.

Saïd hit the post and Lens had two goals disallowed for offside in the first half. The domination continued after the break with France winger Florian Thauvin scoring a penalty before substitute forward Rayan Fofana netted twice late on.

Marseille led 2-0 after Amine Gouiri created one goal and scored the other. But Marseille's feeble defense fell apart and striker Joaquin Panichelli's rescued a point with a 97th-minute penalty.

“Once again we conceded a late goal (and) we wasted everything at the end,” Gouiri said. “When things happen a dozen times, it’s not the (tactical) choices of the coach, it’s us on the field.”

Fourth-placed Marseille is two points behind Lyon in third, having played one game more.

Fifth-placed Lille missed the chance to close the gap on Marseille after drawing 1-1 with Brest. Lille still has not won a league game in 2026.

Marseille's players were reeling from Roberto De Zerbi's departure on Wednesday, just days after a humiliating 5-0 loss at PSG.

The atmosphere was tense at Stade Vélodrome.

Both stands behind the goal were empty except for angry banners, with one urging American owner Frank McCourt and president Pablo Longoria in blunt terms to leave, along with the words "all of your projects go up in smoke! After all these wasted years.”

Nine-time French champion Marseille has not won a trophy since the now-defunct League Cup in 2012.

The fans who did turn up on Saturday booed the players onto the field.

Gouiri set up Mason Greenwood’s league-leading 14th goal of the season in the 14th minute. He neatly controlled the ball near the penalty with the outside of his foot and played a pass behind the defense for Greenwood to clip the ball in.

Gouiri curled in Marseille's second goal in the 47th after collecting a botched clearance from goalkeeper Mike Penders.

Sebastian Nanasi replied in the 74th before Marseille defender Emerson Palmieri clumsily gave away a penalty.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Lens's Wesley Said, center, celebrates with his teammates scoring a side goal during the French League One soccer match between Paris FC and Lens in Paris, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

Lens's Wesley Said, center, celebrates with his teammates scoring a side goal during the French League One soccer match between Paris FC and Lens in Paris, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

Strasbourg's head coach Gary O'neil stands on the sideline during the French League One soccer match between Marseille and Strasbourg in Marseille, France, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Philippe Magoni)

Marseille's Amine Gouiri scores his side's 2nd goal during the French League One soccer match between Marseille and Strasbourg in Marseille, France, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Philippe Magoni)

Banners protesting the club owner are placed on the stands during the French League One soccer match between Marseille and Strasbourg in Marseille, France, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Philippe Magoni)

Marseille's Mason Greenwood, right, celebrates scoring his side's opening goal during the French League One soccer match between Marseille and Strasbourg in Marseille, France, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Philippe Magoni)

Marseille's goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli fails to save a penalty kicked by Strasbourg's Joaquin Panichelli (9) during the French League One soccer match between Marseille and Strasbourg in Marseille, France, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Philippe Magoni)

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo says he’s healthy and wants to play even as the Milwaukee Bucks continue to say the two-time MVP is too injured to take the floor.

Antetokounmpo missed a 10th straight game on Friday night against the Boston Celtics due to what the team has described as a left knee hyperextension and bone bruise. Antetokounmpo hasn’t played since landing awkwardly during a March 15 victory over the Indiana Pacers.

“I’m healthy,” Antetokounmpo told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and The Athletic before Friday’s game. “I hate it when people force me to do things against my nature. I’m a player. I get paid to play.”

For the last couple of weeks, Antetokounmpo has participated in pregame warmups without showing any apparent signs of injury.

Antetokounmpo also noted that the Bucks should have known this about him since the 31-year-old has spent his entire 13-year career in Milwaukee.

Throughout that time, Antetokounmpo has had a reputation for rapid returns from injury, most notably when he hyperextended his knee during Milwaukee’s 2021 playoff run but missed two games before returning to lead the Bucks to their first title in half a century.

“You know who you’re dealing with,” Antetokounmpo told reporters. “So, for somebody to come and tell me to not play or to not compete, it’s like a slap in my face.”

The Bucks still had a remote chance of earning a 10th straight playoff berth at the time of that Indiana game, but they were officially eliminated from contention last week. There’s also the possibility of Antetokounmpo getting hurt again if he returns to action — he has missed a career-high 41 games this season and had two extended absences due to calf strains.

“I understand the circumstances — yes, we’re not going to be in the playoffs,” Antetokounmpo said. “For some people’s eyes, it’s not worth it for me to be out there. But for me, it’s something that goes against my nature.”

Antetokounmpo also wanted the opportunity to play alongside his younger brother, Alex, who made his NBA debut Sunday. There was a possibility of three Antetokounmpo brothers playing alongside each other in the same game, since Giannis’ older brother, Thanasis, also is on the Bucks.

“When my dad passed away, I pretty much raised (Alex),” Antetokounmpo said. “He’s able to be on the team and suit up and chase an opportunity to be great. You really think I don’t want to suit up and play with my brother? Anybody who thinks that is an idiot.”

Antetokounmpo’s desire to play — and the Bucks’ wishes to rest him — drew the attention of the National Basketball Players Association last month.

“The Player Participation Policy was designed by the league to hold teams accountable and ensure that when an All-Star like Giannis Antetokounmpo is healthy and ready to play, he is on the court,” the union said in a statement. “Unfortunately, anti-tanking policies are only as effective as their enforcement; fans, broadcast partners, and the integrity of the game itself will continue to suffer as long as ownership goes unchecked. We look forward to collaborating with the NBA on meaningful new proposals that will directly address and discourage tanking.”

This dispute between Antetokounmpo and the Bucks comes at a time when his future in Milwaukee is uncertain. Antetokounmpo’s name dominated league-wide discussions leading up to the trade deadline, though the Bucks ultimately kept him.

Antetokounmpo becomes eligible to sign a four-year contract extension worth up to $275 million in October. If he doesn’t sign the extension, Antetokounmpo could become a free agent after the 2026-27 season, or the Bucks could decide to trade him beforehand.

Now they find themselves at odds over how to handle the rest of this season.

“I don’t know where the relationship goes from there,” Antetokounmpo said. “We’ve got to go to couples therapy.”

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Injured Milwaukee Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo, center right, talks with an official, center left, during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Boston Celtics, Friday, April 3, 2026, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Aaron Gash)