Strasbourg 5-1 Auxerre: Gessime Yassine scores twice in rout

Gessime Yassine scored twice and set up another goal as Strasbourg beat ten-man Auxerre 5-1 at the Stade de la Meinau on Sunday, ending a run of four straight Ligue 1 defeats. Dário Essugo, Martial Godo and Conrad Harder were also on target for Hugo Oliveira's side.

Match facts

• Result: Strasbourg 5-1 Auxerre (half-time 1-0)
• Competition: Ligue 1 McDonald's, Matchday 9
• Venue: Stade de la Meinau, Strasbourg
• Scorers: Strasbourg - Essugo 41', Godo 55', Harder 62' (pen), Yassine 77', 85'; Auxerre - Archer 68'
• Red cards: Dioubaté (Auxerre) 74'
• Next: Toulouse v Strasbourg, Ligue 1, Friday 6 November (19:45 UK); Auxerre v Paris FC, Ligue 1, Saturday 7 November (16:15 UK)

How the match unfolded

Strasbourg controlled the game from the start. In the seventh minute Paul Nardi saved Yassine's close-range header from a Godo cross, and Ismaël Doukouré shot wide from a corner in the 19th minute. Auxerre's best chance of the half came on the half-hour, when Romain Faivre fired off target after a pass from Danny Namaso.

The breakthrough arrived four minutes before the break. Joaquin Oso found Essugo, who struck a right-footed shot from the centre of the box past Nardi.

Strasbourg doubled their lead on the counter-attack in the 55th minute. Yassine released Godo, who beat Christ Makosso and finished low into the bottom corner with his left foot. Four minutes later Godo made way for Sebastian Nanasi.

In the 60th minute Yassine drew a foul from Makosso inside the box. Makosso was booked, and Harder sent the penalty into the top corner with his left foot two minutes later.

Auxerre coach Will Still made four changes in the 63rd minute, and his side pulled one back five minutes later. Faivre headed the ball into the path of Cameron Archer, who finished from the centre of the box.

Any hope of a comeback ended in the 74th minute. Substitute Lamfia Dioubaté, on the pitch for 11 minutes, was shown a straight red card after a foul on Yassine.

Yassine then took over. In the 77th minute he finished with his left foot after a pass from Nanasi, and eight minutes later he headed in Oso's cross from close range for his second. Strasbourg ended the game with 64.3% of the ball and 19 shots to Auxerre's six.

What does the win mean for Strasbourg?

The win ends a difficult run. Strasbourg had lost their previous four league games, against Paris FC, Nice, Paris Saint-Germain and Rennes, including a 2-1 defeat at Nice in which Essugo also scored and a 3-1 home loss to PSG.

It is their third league win of the season. Strasbourg started the day 16th on seven points and now have 10, level with Auxerre, with the rest of Matchday 9 still to be played. The 20-year-old Yassine was involved in three of the five goals, while Oso provided two assists.

What happens next?

Strasbourg travel to Toulouse on Friday 6 November (19:45 UK). Auxerre, beaten for the fifth time in the league this season, host Paris FC on Saturday 7 November (16:15 UK). Still's side also conceded four last month in a 4-1 defeat at Rennes. More results are in our Ligue 1 section.

Follow BetAlert: Telegram · WhatsApp · Discord — and check any betting account for free at BetAlert.