The end of 2021 has come for the top-tier football category in France, and just as predicted, PSG has dominated the league despite some scares and a somehow below-average performance. Mauricio Pochettino's side is yet to convince those who want their football to be beautiful and pure, but the Argentine and his team are getting the job done with a handsome lead after nineteen games.
Nice and Marseille will finish the year even on points, but Marseille still have a game in hand. That game could be key in their hopes to dethrone PSG, although that might be easier said than done. Other teams, such as defending champions Lille, are slowly bouncing back in their effort to return to European competition spots, and the current Ligue 1 holders will surely become one of the teams to watch in 2022.
Here's all you need to know regarding Ligue 1's final matchday of the year and what to look forward to in weeks to come.
Top five teams in Ligue 1 up to December 22
As previously stated, PSG are top of the league with a thirteen-point lead over Nice and Marseille, who traded positions this past Wednesday. Completing the top five are Rennes and Montpellier after successfully defending their ground in the past few weeks.
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Who are top three goalscorers in Ligue 1?
Jonathan David leads the pack with 12 goals to his name. The Canadian ace is followed closely by Wissam Ben Yedder, who has found the back of the net 10 times. If you were wondering where are PSG's strikers in this list, Kylian Mbappé has stepped up for his team with nine goals so far, making him the biggest threat for the current leader thanks to his late surge of goals.
Canadian striker Jonathan David will be one of the most-sought out players in the upcoming transfer window, as his contract is about to end with the French side.
Top Ligue 1 headlines, stats, and other facts
Sergio Ramos keeps adding to woeful disciplinary record with red card vs Lorient: Sergio Ramos' stint at PSG has been anything but inspiring, and he added to that perception by picking up his first red card in just his second game with the French capital side. He has now been sent off for the 20th time in a league game, the highest tally for any player in the top 5 European leagues.
Mbappé becomes the world's second most prolific striker: The French superstar enters the final months of his contract with PSG having scored 43 goals across all comps for Les Parisiens. His numbers are only surpassed by Robert Lewandowski's, who managed to score 58 times for Bayern during this calendar year. With those numbers, any team interested in his services will have to come up with a large sum of cash to add his talent to their squad.
Ligue 1 top scorer linked to European heavyweights: It has been quite a year for Canadian striker Jonathan David, who is close to leading Canada to their first World Cup in over 36 years, and on top of that, he is leading the league in goals scored for the first time in his career. With such performances, it is not strange to see his name being linked to Real Madrid and Arsenal, with the Gunners reportedly getting closer to a potential signing this summer.
Top Ligue 1 matches on January 7-9, 2022
Brest vs Nice: The current Ligue 1 runners-up will get things going next year with a tough match against Brest, one of the teams that had a great start of the season but ended up fading away. It will be interesting to see how Christophe Galtier's men live up to the pressure of their current spot in the league and if they can hold on to it until the end of the season. The first thing they should do to earn such an honor will be to beat the 12th-ranked team in the league.
Nantes vs Monaco: Monaco are seemingly on their way back to the top spots, and their good form will be tested by Nantes in a game where both have a legitimate shot of making it to the top five. Both teams have only lost once in their last five games, so this could be quite an entertaining match in our hands when Ligue 1 resumes.
Lyon vs PSG: The league leaders will show up to Lyon in one of the toughest and most interesting matches of the season when the league returns to action. Mbappé, Messi, and Co. will be put to test by Lyon, who have not been as impressive as in previous seasons, but surely have what it takes to put up a good performance against the leaders. Both teams will enter this match having drawn their last game of 2021, which will make it even more interesting to see which side goes back to winning ways.
Make sure you don't miss out on these key games and stay on top of all the action by checking out our bespoke Ligue 1 match page.
