Belgian forward Matias Fernandez-Pardo converted a 26th-minute penalty after a foul on Romain Perraud, sending former Paris St-Germain goalkeeper Kevin Trapp the wrong way with his spot kick.

The win puts Lille level on 57 points with third-placed Lyon, who beat Auxerre 3-2 on Saturday.

However, Lille will rue their narrow victory, as they now have the same goal difference as Lyon, but the run-in favours Lille, who will face lower-table clubs Le Havre and Auxerre.

Lyon, on the other hand, still have to play Rennes, who are fifth and just a point behind and have their own European aspirations.

The top three teams in France earn Champions League places while the fourth-placed club goes into the qualifying rounds.

Metz staved off relegation for at least another week with an entertaining 4-4 draw away to Le Havre.

Gauthier Hein proved to be Metz’s saviour, scoring in the 85th minute to bring the scores level, having earlier netted from the penalty spot.