Winger Paul-Georges Ntep and forward Giovanni Sio scored as second-place Rennes won 2-0 at Nantes in a hot-tempered Brittany derby to close the gap on French league leader Paris Saint-Germain.
Nantes finished with nine men, after midfielder Adryan Oliveira Tavares was sent off early into the second half and Icelandic striker Kolbeinn Sigthorsson got a straight red for another dangerous tackle in the 77th minute.
In between the red cards, the Reds of Rennes took the lead as Ntep grabbed his first goal of the season from close range in the 67th after goalkeeper Maxime Dupe had saved Abdoulaye Doucoure's shot.
The burly Sio pounced one minute from time with a low shot after running onto Doucoure's pass for his third goal of the season.
The win gives coach Philippe Montanier's Rennes side 12 points after five matches, one behind PSG — which dropped its first points of the season on Friday in a 2-2 home draw against Bordeaux.
"No one was expecting us to be in this position," said Ntep, who is hoping to play in next year's European Championship after recently breaking into the squad.
Meanwhile, new coach Michel celebrated another resounding home win as Marseille thumped Bastia 4-1.
Right back Benjamin Mendy gave Marseille the lead in the 16th with a dipping shot from just outside the area that looped over goalkeeper Jesper Hansen and crept in under the crossbar.
After striker Michy Batshuayi missed a good chance for 2-0 just before the interval, winger Romain Alessandrini — one of Marseille's liveliest players this season — struck just after the break and then added another before Batshuayi completed the scoring in the 70th.
The Spanish coach took charge after Marcelo Bielsa's shock resignation after the first game of the season, and his first home match in charge was a 6-0 rout of Troyes. A 2-0 loss at Guingamp followed, which was Marseille's third defeat of the campaign following a chaotic start.
"We needed the points today in front of our fans," Batshuayi said. "We played some good football and everyone's getting better."
Brazilian striker Brandao, who scored 17 league goals in 82 games for Marseille in a three-year spell, got Bastia's consolation goal.
Earlier, Brazilian defender Fabinho scored a first-half penalty as Monaco secured a scrappy 1-0 win away against Corsican side Ajaccio.
Fabinho stroked his spot kick low to the left in the 16th minute after veteran defender David Ducourtioux handled Ivan Cavaleiro's cross.
"We didn't play well but the most important thing was to win," Monaco centre half Andrea Raggi said. "A lot of players have left the club but we still have a strong team."
Monaco, which sold several key players during the off-season, was playing its first league game since selling 19-year-old forward Anthony Martial to Manchester United on the last day of the summer transfer window in a deal that could rise to 80 million euros ($90 million).
Argentine Guido Carrillo replaced him up front, but Monaco lacked creativity and speed in attack for most of the match.
Cavaleiro went close in the 31st but Ajaccio goalkeeper Clement Maury made a smart save to his left.
Ajaccio almost equalized in the 78th when Issiaga Sylla forced Monaco goalkeeper Danijel Subasic into action, and moments later Maury kicked away Monaco midfielder Mario Pasalic's goal-bound strike.
This content appears as provided to The Globe by the originating wire service. It has not been edited by Globe staff.