Fuente: © UEFA (English)
http://www.uefa.com/

FOOTBALL EUROPE: Benzema keeps double hopes alive

/noticias.info/ Two Karim Benzema goals fired Olympique Lyonnais into the quarter-finals of the Coupe de France with a 2-1 win against holders FC Sochaux-Montbéliard, maintaining hopes of a maiden domestic double.

Sochaux resolve
Looking for their first Coupe de France triumph since 1973, the Ligue 1 leaders found it difficult to create chances against a Sochaux side struggling in 18th position in the league but determined to fight for the trophy they won under current Lyon boss Alain Perrin last May.

Late drama
Benzema eventually broke the visitors' resistance on 55 minutes, beautifully controlling a pass from Cris before sliding the ball home left-footed. Sochaux thought they had forced extra time when Kandia Traoré shot past Grégory Coupet in the 89th minute, but Benzema struck again seconds after the restart, prodding in from close range after Kader Keita's cross had been deflected past Teddy Richert.

Relegation fears
Elsewhere, Paris Saint-Germain FC coach Paul Le Guen made his priorities clear by selecting a youthful team for the visit of Ligue 2 side SC Bastia. The capital club are struggling to avoid relegation from Ligue 1, yet their cup form remains outstanding and they now have a Coupe de France quarter-final to look forward to as well as the League Cup final later this month.

Arnaud double
Striker Loris Arnaud was one of several youngsters to impress for the hosts, opening the scoring after latching on to Younousse Sankharé's cutback in the 19th minute, only for Pierre-Yves André to equalise for Bastia with a long-range volley three minutes later. Just as it looked like becoming another frustrating evening for the Parc des Princes faithful, the 20-year-old Arnaud struck again on 67 minutes, pouncing on Sylvain Armand's cross to register his second goal from close range.

Schumacher goals
Tuesday's two other ties also respected the form book as second division Dijon FCO defeated Tour FC 3-1 and CS Sedan-Ardennes edged past their Ligue 2 rivals SCO d'Angers 2-0. Charles Boateng handed Dijon the lead before Tiago Schumacher's double ended the hopes of third division Tour, for whom Fatih Atik scored a late penalty. Sedan, meanwhile, prevailed thanks to goals from Djamel Abdoun and Moussa Sow. notas_de_prensa_archivo