PARIS -- Lyon kept the heat on Paris Saint-Germain in a close-fought French title race thanks to beating Guingamp 3-1 with a goal each from strike duo Nabil Fekir and Alexandre Lacazette on Saturday.
Forward Clinton Njie grabbed the other goal in the second half, meaning all of Lyon's scorers were homegrown players.
Lyon's title challenge has gained momentum because of Lacazette and Fekir, who have 36 league goals between them, with Lacazette on a league-high 24.
''I firmly believe that something (special) is happening and that we can go all the way,'' said long-serving Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas, who oversaw its French record seven straight titles from 2002-08.
Lyon featured nine homegrown players in the starting lineup, and all three substitutes who went on were also developed within the club.
''We're right in it. We have nothing to envy anyone and we'll hold on until the end,'' Lyon coach Hubert Fournier said. ''We have seven games remaining, seven battles.''
The contrast between Lyon and cash-rich PSG could not be greater.
Bankrolled by Qatari investors since June 2011, PSG boasts star striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic and five players costing more than 40 million euros each.
PSG is two points behind Lyon and must win at bitter rival Marseille on Sunday to reclaim top spot.
A win for Marseille, meanwhile, would move it above PSG and into second spot - one point behind Lyon, which has the best goal difference - in a title showdown that looks like going down to the last round.
''We'll watch tomorrow's match calmly,'' Fournier said.
Fekir, who recently broke into the France team after deciding against playing for his father's homeland of Algeria, struck midway through the first half with a shot from outside the area that goalkeeper Jonas Lossl misjudged.
Lacazette, who scored his first international goal for France in last weekend's 2-0 win against Denmark, slotted home a penalty, which he earned, shortly before halftime. Moments later, Guingamp defender Christophe Kerbrat was sent off for a dangerous tackle on midfielder Jordan Ferri.
Njie made it 3-0 before forward Claudio Beauvue grabbed a consolation goal.
Nice 2-2 Evian
Nice and Evian both picked up another point in their battles for Ligue 1 survival following a 2-2 draw at the Allianz Riviera.
Evian took a 18th-minute lead through Dany Nounkeu, Daniel Wass having wasted an earlier chance to put them in front from the penalty spot, but they had to rely on an Adrien Thomasson equaliser 12 minutes from time to earn a share of the spoils.
Goals either side of half-time from Alexy Bosetti and Valentin Eysseric had turned the match in Nice's favour.
The draw left hosts Nice six points clear of the drop zone, with their opponents two points worse off.
Lille 3-1 Reims
Lille got back to winning ways in emphatic fashion to keep their faint hopes of Europe alive with a 3-1 triumph over strugglers Reims.
Sebastien Corchia and Divock Origi put the hosts 2-0 up before Nicolas de Preville pulled one back for Reims but Nolan Roux added gloss to the scoreline at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy.
The triumph consolidates Lille's position in eighth in Ligue 1 and sees them get back on track immediately after St Etienne ended their three-match winning streak with a 2-0 win over them last week.
Les Dogues are currently 10 points behind Monaco in fourth and are likely to be relying on results in the Coupe de France and Coupe de la Ligue going in their favour to make Europa League qualification a more realistic target.
Reims, meanwhile, remain firmly entrenched in the battle for survival just three points above the drop zone.
Metz 3-2 Toulouse
Metz gave themselves at least some hope of staying in Ligue 1 as Modibo Maiga's hat-trick earned them victory over relegation rivals Toulouse.
Wissam Ben Yedder gave Toulouse a 21st-minute lead but Maiga - on loan from West Ham - quickly equalised, put Metz ahead before half-time and completed his treble early in the second period.
Toulouse then had Marcel Tisserand sent off and could only manage a late consolation from Tongo Doumbia.
Metz would have been nervous going into injury time with only a single-goal lead, but they held out for a vital win.
Albert Cartier's side remain eight points adrift of safety and six behind their opponents, but defeat would have surely ended their hopes altogether.
Lorient 0-3 Rennes
Rennes took a significant step closer to Ligue 1 survival with a 3-0 win at Lorient, whose own hopes of avoiding the drop received another hit.
Edson Mexer gave Rennes a 17th-minute lead and then goals either side of half-time from Sylvain Armand and Abdoulaye Doucoure ensured Philippe Montanier's men would be returning home with the points.
The victory leaves Rennes 10 points clear of third-bottom Toulouse - who lost to Metz on Saturday - and it would take a dramatic loss of form for them to go down now.
It is not such a positive picture for Lorient, however. They have now lost four of their last five matches and remain just two points above Toulouse.
The hosts actually gave as good as they got during the game, but it was Rennes who were more clinical in front of goal.
Sixth-place Montpellier rallied to beat Corsican side Bastia 3-1 as striker Lucas Barrios made it 11 goals in 23 games.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
