Saint-Etienne was booed off the field after its first loss at home - and fifth in a row without a win - by 2-1 to Lorient in the French league on Saturday.
Saint-Etienne has taken only two out of 15 possible points in its last five games.
After topping the standings earlier this season, Saint-Etienne hasn't won a league match since beating its fierce rival Lyon on Sept. 25.
Lorient dominated from the start and was rewarded in the 22nd minute after Morgan Amalfitano set up Kevin Gameiro on the right, with the striker slotting home the first of his pair with an angled shot between goalkeeper Jeremie Janot's legs.
Lorient then created many chances but lacked the finishing touches and saw Saint-Etienne come back when Bakary Sako scored from close range in the 56th.
Gameiro finally gave his team the three points when he jumped higher than defender Sylvain Marchal and headed home from Amalfitano's perfect cross in the 82nd minute.
Saint-Etienne moved down to fifth with 18 points from 12 games, while Lorient moved up to seventh with 17 points.
Second-placed Rennes was held to 1-1 at home by Lyon and missed the opportunity to reclaim the top spot. Rennes was knocked out of first place last week by promoted Brest after its match at Marseille was postponed because of torrential rain.
Brest, which travels to Lille on Sunday, has 21 points, one more than Rennes.
Rennes got off to an excellent start, creating four chances in a five-minute spell, with Jires Kembo Ekoko opening the scoring with a powerful right-footed strike in the top corner after turning down Lyon captain Cris.
Lyon 'keeper Hugo Lloris then made several good saves before halftime to keep his team in the match.
Michel Bastos put the teams even in the 52nd when his 25-meter drive ended in the top corner after deflecting off Stephane Dalmat's shoulder.
Lyon, which was handed its first Champions League defeat this season at Benfica this week, remained 10th with 16 points and fans once again asked for coach Claude Puel's resignation.
Striker Moussa Maazou scored in the 85th to help Bordeaux salvage a 1-1 home draw against Valenciennes while last-place Arles claimed its maiden win this season with a 3-2 defeat of Caen.
Bordeaux looked poised for a fifth defeat when Jussie missed a penalty in the 56th following David Ducourtioux's opener in the 18th minute after Gael Danic burst down the left flank and set up the defender with a clever back pass.
Bordeaux was granted a penalty after Remi Gomis' handball in the box was called in the 56th but goalkeeper Nicolas Penneteau pushed away Jussie's effort.
Bordeaux wasted several chances until Maazou fired home a nice volley from Tremoulinas' cross at the far post.
Bordeaux, which ended Lyon's run of seven consecutive titles two seasons ago, remained ninth with 16 points.
"Sometimes I have the feeling that it would be better if players were fighting each other at training like it happens sometimes in Milan," Bordeaux president Jean-Louis Triaud said. "Maybe it would wake my players up. The coach (Jean Tigana) is not responsible for this. The players should change everything because they can't be worse."
Veteran striker Kaba Diawara scored a brace for Arles including one from the spot after Gael Germany opened the southern team's account. Arles remains in last place with only five points, lagging five points behind 19th-placed Lens.
Also on Saturday, a local court in Marseille confirmed that away fans won't be allowed at Parc des Princes due to security fears when Paris Saint-Germain hosts bitter rival Marseille on Sunday.
Several groups of Marseille fans had taken legal action after the French football league decided to ban them from the stadium.
Last season, there were major clashes in the Marseille city center between the teams' supporters, and Marseille fans were subsequently banned from attending the return match in Paris.
