Funny relegation story from France.

Imagine the scenario: You’re in the bottom two, two go down, third-bottom is a relegation playoff. You trail by three points and have a goal difference seven worse, but your rivals above you lose their last game 2-0. You’re winning 4-0…and then, in the 90th minute, score the fifth. Level on points, level on goal difference, and you’ve scored more goals.

But you’re still relegated.

That’s the situation encountered by Lorient in Ligue 1 this year and the reason isn’t even their head-to-head record, either.

Lorient and Metz both took three points in head-to-head games, both had the same goal difference in games against each other and the same goals scored in those matches too. But they are relegated because while they won 2-1 on the road in February, they lost the home encounter 3-2 in November.

In France, the sixth deciding factor on separating teams is away goals scored in head-to-head matches, then it’s goals scored across the whole season. So Lorient are down, Metz have one final chance to save themselves…as a result of an 83rd-minute penalty scored six months ago!