PARIS, Jan 30: Dimitri Payet sent Dimitry Bertaud the wrong way as Marseille beat Montpellier 5-4 Saturday in a penalty shootout to reach the quarterfinals of the French Cup.
Payet’s calmly taken strike clinched it for 10-time Cup winner Marseille after the match went straight to penalties after ending 1-1 at Stade Velodrome.
Marseille took the lead when Poland striker Arkadiusz Milik angled a shot into the right of the net following a scramble inside the penalty area in the 74th minute. It was his fifth goal in three games in the competition.
But poor defending allowed Montpellier to equalize moments later when central defender Duje Culeta-Car did not deal with a high ball and 19-year-old Congo forward Beni Makouana stole ahead of him to loft it over goalkeeper Pau Lopez.
Payet had hit the crossbar with a curling free kick late in the first half and clipped a shot over moments later, but Bertaud made a couple of smart saves late on.
Marseille has not won the trophy since 1989.
Earlier, fourth-tier Versailles produced an upset when it won 1-0 at second division leader Toulouse.
The dozens of Versailles fans who traveled south from outside of Paris for 670 kilometers (415 miles) were jubilant at the final whistle, as were the substitutes who rushed off the bench to hug their teammates.
Toulouse had played most of the match with 10 players after forward Steve Mvoue was sent off in the 22nd minute and the visitors eventually took advantage when striker Kapitbafan Djoco knocked in a low cross in the 79th.
Versailles held on during the six minutes of stoppage time and could yet face trophy holder Paris Saint-Germain, which is at home to Nice on Monday. PSG leads the French league with Nice in second place.
Second-tier Bastia won 5-3 on penalties at top-tier Reims. It was a sweet moment for Bastia-born Benjamin Santelli as he netted the winning spot kick after the match finished 1-1.
The 19-year-old forward Hugo Ekitike put Reims ahead in the 38th with his ninth goal of the season.
Sebastien Salles-Lamonge equalized in the 71st for Bastia, which won the Cup in 1981 and lost the final in 2002 but is now struggling near the foot of the second division.
Reims has won the trophy twice but not since 1958 when the prolific Just Fontaine led the attack. Fontaine went on to make soccer history and his 13 goals at the ’58 World Cup remain a tournament record.
Nancy, which is bottom of the second division, lost 2-0 at home to second-tier rival Amiens. (AP)
