Paris Saint-Germain made to wait a little longer for 13th Ligue 1 title after Monaco beats Nice

PARIS (AP) — Unbeaten Paris Saint-Germain moved within touching distance of a record-extending 13th Ligue 1 title after overwhelming Saint-Etienne 6-1 on Saturday.

After Marseille lost at Reims 3-1 earlier Saturday, PSG played its part then could have clinched the title if Monaco drew at home to Riviera rival Nice in the late game.

They were 1-1 until the 73rd minute when Monaco scored again and won 2-1.

Monaco moved up to second place and was 21 points behind PSG with seven games left, meaning PSG needs only a draw at home to Angers next Saturday to again be crowned as the French champion.

PSG fell behind early to a well-worked goal when Swedish forward Lucas Stassin headed in Zuriko Davitashvili’s left-wing cross.

But after Gonçalo Ramos equalized with a late first-half penalty, 17th-placed Saint-Etienne collapsed after the break. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia fired PSG ahead and Désiré Doué scored twice either side of a João Neves goal.

The 17-year-old substitute Ibrahim Mbaye completed the rout in the 90th minute with his first goal for PSG.

In the late game, Monaco striker Mika Biereth had an early penalty saved by goalkeeper Marcin Bułka and Nice took the lead shortly before the break when Jérémie Boga headed in a cross.

Biereth equalized in the 55th after latching onto Maghnes Akliouche’s clever flick and shooting into the top right corner for his 12th league goal.

The lively Akliouche then showed good skill to set up Breel Embolo in the 73rd. U.S. striker Folarin Balogun went on as a late substitute for Monaco after recovering from shoulder surgery and almost scored.

Veteran Nice captain Dante, who is 41, was sent off in stoppage time for fouling Akliouche as he went clean through.

Earlier, Marseille dominated before falling behind in the 29th. Japan forward Keito Nakamura wrong-footed defender Leonardo Balerdi inside the penalty area and curled the ball in for his ninth league goal.

Careless play led to the second goal as Reims broke from midfield and Nakamura shrugged off Valentin Rongier before setting up Mamadou Diakhon for a left-foot finish.

Valentin Atangana added the third and Rongier pulled one back for inconsistent Marseille, which slipped to its fourth defeat in five games.

Marseille midfielder Adrien Rabiot was scathing about the attitude of some of his teammates.

“It's just not good enough. I get the impression of watching guys who don't want to play in the Champions League next season,” Rabiot told broadcaster beIN SPORTS. "If some players don't want to, then they should say so before the game and just not play.”

It was Reims' first league win since November.

Several thousand Saint-Etienne fans took to the streets before their game in a protest march against French interior minister Bruno Retailleau's plan to dissolve the club's two main ultras groups, the Magic Fans and the Green Angels.

Those at the front carried a giant green banner in the club's colors, which read "Le Chaudron Ne Se Dissout Pas” (The Cauldron Does Not Dissolve). The Cauldron is the nickname given to Saint-Etienne's Stade Geoffroy-Guichard because of its intense atmosphere.

Club president Ivan Gazidis joined the fans.

“I am very happy to see our city united," he said. "It’s a wonderful response to this unfair process that will resolve nothing.”

Other groups of ultras are also under threat of being disbanded. The French interior ministry said there has been soccer-related violence at 64 matches this season, leading to 627 arrests.

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PSG's Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, right, and Saint-Etienne's Mickael Nade vie for the ball during the French League One soccer match between Saint-Etienne and Paris Saint Germain at the Geoffroy-Guichard stadium in Saint-Etienne, France, Saturday, March 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Laurent Cirpriani)

Saint-Etienne's Lucas Stassin, fourth from right, celebrates after scoring during the French League One soccer match between Saint-Etienne and Paris Saint Germain at the Geoffroy-Guichard stadium in Saint-Etienne, France, Saturday, March 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Laurent Cirpriani)

PSG's Joao Neves celebrates after scoring during the French League One soccer match between Saint-Etienne and Paris Saint Germain at the Geoffroy-Guichard stadium in Saint-Etienne, France, Saturday, March 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Laurent Cipriani)

PSG's Goncalo Ramos scores a penalty kick during the French League One soccer match between Saint-Etienne and Paris Saint Germain at the Geoffroy-Guichard stadium in Saint-Etienne, France, Saturday, March 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Laurent Cirpriani)

PSG's Khvicha Kvaratskhelia celebrates after scoring during the French League One soccer match between Saint-Etienne and Paris Saint Germain at the Geoffroy-Guichard stadium in Saint-Etienne, France, Saturday, March 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Laurent Cirpriani)

PSG's Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, second from left, celebrates after scoring during the French League One soccer match between Saint-Etienne and Paris Saint Germain at the Geoffroy-Guichard stadium in Saint-Etienne, France, Saturday, March 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Laurent Cipriani)

PSG's Desire Doue celebrates after scoring during the French League One soccer match between Saint-Etienne and Paris Saint Germain at the Geoffroy-Guichard stadium in Saint-Etienne, France, Saturday, March 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Laurent Cipriani)

A Cornell University student facing deportation after his visa was revoked because of his campus activism said he decided to leave the United States.

Momodou Taal, a citizen of the United Kingdom and Gambia, had asked a federal court to halt his detention. But he posted on X late Monday that he didn't believe a legal ruling in his favor would guarantee his safety or ability to speak out.

“I have lost faith I could walk the streets without being abducted,” Momodou Taal wrote from an unknown location. “Weighing up these options, I took the decision to leave on my own terms.”

The government says it revoked Taal’s student visa in March because of his involvement in “disruptive protests,” as well as for disregarding university policies and creating a hostile environment for Jewish students.

The Trump administration has attempted to remove noncitizens from the country for participating in campus protests that it deems antisemitic and sympathetic to the militant Palestinian group Hamas. Students say the government is targeting them for advocating for Palestinian rights.

Taal, a 31-year-old doctoral student in Africana studies at the Ivy League school in Ithaca, New York, was suspended last fall after a group of pro-Palestinian activists disrupted a campus career fair. He had been continuing his studies remotely this semester.

Taal filed a federal lawsuit against the Trump administration citing his right to free speech. The lawsuit was withdrawn Monday.

In his post, Taal didn't say where he was writing from or where he intended to live next. He didn't immediately respond to a text seeking comment.

“Everything I have tried to do has been in service of affirming the humanity of the Palestinian people, a struggle that will leave a lasting mark on me,” Taal wrote.

His attorney, Eric Lee, didn't immediately respond to a message seeking comment. Lee posted on X: “What is America if people like Momodou are not welcome here?”

A woman walks by a Cornell University sign on the Ivy League school's campus in Ithaca, New York, on Friday, Jan. 14, 2022. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey, File)