Lens supporters kept total silence for the first nine minutes at Bollaert Stadium before turning the pressure back on their own team. The protest came after the club's 1-9 Champions League defeat against Como, and Lens were already coming in off a 0-1 derby loss in Lille. Marseille still won 1-2 in Lens vs Marseille, which meant a third straight defeat for the home side.
The backlash in the stands
The anger was not hard to miss. Supporters resumed backing the team only after ten minutes of play, and the banners in the ground linked the recent collapse in Europe with the derby defeat. One message read, "They are the shame of 120 years of history", while another said, "The derby for shame, Como for humiliation".
Lens' domestic numbers have not helped calm anyone either. They are 11th in Ligue 1 with 13 points from 10 matches, a flat return for a side that has now lost three in a row. Marseille's own league position gave the win some extra weight, with the visitors fourth in Ligue 1 on 18 points.
Marseille's quick start and late winner
Marseille were ahead after just two minutes when Amine Gouiri scored, and Florian Thauvin equalised in the 20th minute. Keyliane Abdallah settled it in the 82nd minute, a late finish that left the away side with a result and Lens with a crowd still furious about what came before.
The 2-1 scoreline will not erase the noise from the stands, and it does not change the fact that the reaction started long before kick-off. Lens now have to deal with another defeat, a protest that ran into the match itself, and the aftermath of that 1-9 night in Como.
Written by Sam Whitfield with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →
