Hello and welcome to Sports Mole's live coverage of Ligue 1 action as Montpellier HSC host Lyon at Stade de la Masson.

As you would have thought being in the midst of the business end of the season, there is still a lot to play for in France.

After a disastrous start to the season, the home side have come on strong throughout the campaign and now have a great chance of earning European qualification. Despite losing the league's top scorer Olivier Giroud to Arsenal during the summer, Montpellier have really hit form recently, and go into this game having won nine of their last 10 games at home.

Lyon, on the hand, have been up around the top for the majority of the year, and at one point looked capable of winning back their Ligue 1 title. However, Paris Saint-Germain look likely to have marched away with the crown, but tonight's visitors can still mathematically finish top of the pile.

We'll have team news for you shortly...

MONTPELLIER XI: Jourdren, Hilton, Bedimo, Congre, El Kaoutari, Belhanda, Stambouli Dabo, Cabella, Mounier, Camara

LYON XI: Vercoutre, Fofana, Kone, Umtiti, Dabo, Gonalons, Malbranque, Grenier, Gourcuff, Briand, Lisandro.

So there are the teams. How do their chances rate this evening?

Lyon recently ended a run of five games without a win by beating Toulouse 3-1 on Sunday.

However, the hosts have been in scintillating form on home soil over recent months, conceding just three times in their last 10 home league games and look a good bet.

The teams are in the tunnel, we're moments away from some French football action!

Both sides have now taken to the field for this match.

Lyon are going to get us underway, wearing their all-white strip.

Meanwhile the champions are sporting their navy shirts, orange shorts and navy socks.

And we're off at Stade de la Mosson!

The home side are playing from left to right while Lyon are vice-versa.

Early corner for Lyon which is swung in but punched away by Jourdren, the second ball into the box is also hooked away. Bright start from the visitors.

Montpellier have since enjoyed a nice spell of possession following Lyon's fast start but no more chances have been created since. There is a great atmosphere at Stade de la Mosson.

Lots of possession for the hosts in the early going, but they have yet to do anything significant with it. Belanda is pulling the strings at the moment for the champions.

Montpellier have a free kick in a decent position here after Camera is chopped down by Umtiti. They have the ball on the right of the box in a great crossing position. The men from the back come forward for the hosts.

It's a real waste, swung far too high and it beats everyone and rolls out for a goal kick. Poor.

CHANCE! OK, it's really only a half-chance. But Lyon go on an attack down the right, before Fofana whips in a ball to Lisandro Lopez, but his header is tame and straight down the throat of Jourdren.

CHANCE! Now this one is a chance and a wonderful one at that. Some lovely play from the hosts results in a cross from the right which just evades the sprawling Lyon defence. Mounier is onside on the far side of the box and brings it down superbly, before adjusting his feet and getting his shot away with the outside of his boot. However, Vercoutre sensed the danger and was quickly off his line to save with his legs. Great keeping, but great chance as well.

CHANCE! End-to-end stuff at Stade de la Mosson at the moment. Lyon can break and have numbers forward, the ball falls to Lopez on the edge of the box, and he blasts it towards the bottom corner, but straight into El-Kaoutari. But with Jourdren still stranded, Lyon can't get another shot away.

POSSESSION: Montpellier 65%-35% Lyon

Great defending from Hilton to thwart Lopez's path on goal. A peach of a ball from Gourcuff is planted over the back line into the path of the Lyon forward, but the Montpellier skipper is quickly back to cut out the shot on the edge of the six-yard box.

CHANCE! Lyon have an opportunity through the right-back Fofana. He dribbles down the right, moves inside and then tries his luck from range. But his shot flies harmlessly over the bar.

CHANCE! It's another chance for Lyon but again it doesn't really trouble the home side. The visitors break forward and Gourcuff slots a pass through to Lopez. There are bodies between him and goal, but Lopez guides a strike towards the near bottom corner, but it is easily held by a relaxed Jourdren. Lopez had better options there.

More of the same over the past few minutes. Montpellier have most of the ball, but Lyon are doing more with it when they have it.

As I say that, Montpellier have a chance from a corner, which lands 10 yards out but bounces over everyone before being scrambled away.

It's been coming, and it was always going to be through this man; Lopez finally has his goal. From being on the back foot, Lyon drive up the other end in force and play the ball out to the left. Gourcuff receives the ball and curls a neat cross towards the near post, and Lopez runs onto it, rises and thumps it home with a powerful header to put the away side ahead.

CHANCE! The hosts come close to a leveller shortly after falling behind. Belhanda curls in a cross deep on the right which falls just behind Mounier. Somehow the little forward adjusts his neck to meet the ball with a diving header, but he lofts it over the bar.

Not too much to report since that last chance. Lyon are just keeping hold of the ball right now.

CHANCE! It's a great chance for Lopez and the visitors should have doubled their lead there. Some breath-taking play involving Gonalons and Briand who manage to pass their way out of the tightest space, the former finds himself off balance inside the box, so he opts to leave the chance to the onrushing Lopez who is in a better position. The striker gets his foot through it, but spurns it into the sidenetting. A top chance for Lyon there.

Game on! Montpellier find an equaliser through star man Belhanda. The Moroccan dances to the edge of the box, shimmying left, right and centre, before place his effort through a crowd of bodies into the bottom corner. The camera instantly pans to Lopez, who knows that his missed opportunity has come back to bite his side. 1-1.

We'll have one extra minute at the end of the first half.

So that's the end of the first half, and we've had a decent first 45 minutes of action. Montpellier had a lot of the early possession, while Lyon had most of the chances.

The visitors went in front courtesy of a powerful Lisandro Lopez header. But moments after Lopez had spurned a great chance to make it 2-0, Younes Belhanda used his trickery to slot home the equaliser.

We've got a tasty second half in the waiting, that's for sure.

Lyon are the first back out onto the field. Montpellier are for some reason waiting in the tunnel.

The hosts are ready to get the second half underway.

And we're now into the second half.

Nearly an early chance for Lyon, but Lopez picks the ball up in an offside position.

Montpellier feel they should have been awarded a penalty after Camara went down inside the box. The cross was whipped in from Belhanda from the right and Camara seemingly fell at the feet of Kone. Nothing given though.

CHANCE! What a block this is! Camara weaves his way down the left, holding off defenders, before creating a cross at the byeline. The ball floats across the face of goal into the path of Cabella, who gets a clean volley away, but it's blocked fantastically by Umtiti, who stops a certain goal.

CHANCE! Montpellier come close again with another opportunity. This time the ball is played to the far post, and Cabella chests the ball into the path of Belhana, whose fierce shot is well blocked.

CHANCE! This time Lyon have a go at goal. Wonderful passing football ends up with Gourcuff on the right of the box, who fires a shot just wide of the near post.

Wow. This second half is on fire. Montpellier go close once again, as Mounier beats the high offside trap and races clear from the left off Belhanda's pass. Vercoutre is out quickly to close down the angle but can only watch as Mounier hooks his lob over his head, but fortunately for him, over the bar as well. That was close.

CHANCE! Again it is the hosts who come close to finding the goal that would put them in front. The corner is floated in from Belhanda and is met with a towering header by Hilton, but it is well held by Vercoutre.

YELLOW CARD Gonalons goes into the book for tripping Cabella.

The hosts are certainly in the ascendancy at the moment. Lyon are seemingly looking to hit Montpellier on the break.

LYON CHANGE Former Fulham maestro Steed Malbranque makes way for Anthony Martial.

MONTPELLIER CHANGE Anthony Mounier is off and Gaetan Charbonnier is on.

The game has gone a bit quiet as we approach the final 17 minutes.

CHANCE! It's that man Younes Belhanda who again comes close for the hosts. He brings the ball from the left to the edge of the box, but flashes his shot in the sidenetting.

LYON CHANGE Lopez is replaced by Bafetimbi Gomis up front.

YELLOW CARD Bakary Kone is shown a yellow for what I can only describe as putting a halt to Belhanda's drive forward.

Cabella lines up the free kick and opts for curl, it takes a deflection of the wall and lands in the hands of Jourdren.

10 minutes left now, can either side produce enough gusto to find a winner?

CHANCE! The shot wasn't great, but it was a lovely bit of trickery from Cabella to create the chance. He spins away from his man with his back to goal, before bursting to the edge of the box. However, excitement gets the better of him, and he drags his effort wide of the near post.

MONTPELLIER CHANGE Bryan Dabo is swapped for Jonas Martin.

CHANCE! That was close. Montpellier are fractions away from taking the lead. Bedimo's sweet cross from the left has Charbonnier gagging to get a head to it, and he looks as if he is going to nod it into the corner of the net, but the slightest of touches from Kone takes it away from the striker, and Charbonnier can only put it wide. Vital touch fromt the centre-back.

OFF THE POST! Montpellier are finishing strongly here, and Charbonnier's mazy run down the byeline ends with a low shot. Jourdren gets a touch and manages to push it against his own post and behind for a corner. What a finish we have.

We have two extra minutes to play.

Heartbreak for the hosts, they don't deserve this. But after conceding a corner, the ball breaks to Grenier on the edge of the box, who drills an effort into the top corner of the net. No chance for the keeper, and a real hammer blow for Montpellier.

And with practically the last kick of the match, Lyon have won the match. What a hit it was from Grenier, but that will really hurt Montpellier. They did not deserve to lose.

That's all from me, I'll be bringing you more French football on Sunday, so make sure you come back for that. Until then, goodnight.