Strasbourg started the game with a blistering pace and looked like a team on a mission trying to set the tone of the game as quickly as possible, and they only needed six minutes to break the deadlock thanks to a beautifully curled free-kick from Jean-Ricner Bellegarde. The visitors continued to put their foot on the gas, and they doubled their lead in the 17th minute through Kevin Gameiro, who capped a beautiful pass from Alexander Djiku with a chipped shot over Benjamin Leroy.
Ajaccio reacted impressively once they found a way to penetrate the opposing defensive line, and scored four goals in 15 minutes. Youcef Belaili pulled one back with a penalty following a handball, and they evened things up less than 60 seconds later through Mounaim El Idrissy, who capped an impressive sequence with a beautiful finish. Furthermore, Thomas Delaine was tripped inside the box and Belaili drilled in his second penalty, to completely flip the game on its head as it went from 0-2 to 3-2 in just seven minutes. Riad Nouri then added a fourth with a header in stoppage time, ending a thrilling first half with six goals.
Strasbourg made three substitutions within the opening 10 minutes of the second half, but they couldn’t turn things around and their lack of ideas hurt them badly. Instead, Ajaccio kept attacking and were inches away from adding another goal to their tally, but Belaili failed to complete a hat-trick of penalties when he missed the target from the spot in the 63rd minute. The home side were reduced to 10 men in the 80th minute when Clement Vidal was sent off following a harsh foul and a subsequent VAR check, but that decision didn’t affect the outcome of the game at all.
Simply put, Strasbourg didn’t have enough ideas to react after conceding four goals in less than 20 minutes, and they were forced to settle with a loss despite an impressive start, whereas Ajaccio got rewarded for an impressive reaction and an elite showing of efficiency in front of goal. Both teams remain in the relegation zone, but Ajaccio snapped a two-game losing streak with the win while Strasbourg are now without a victory in four games.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Youcef Belaili (AC Ajaccio)
