17 April 2004 - So Sweet For Sochaux

On 17 April 2004, Sochaux won their first trophy in 40 years, beating Nantes on penalties in the Coupe de la Ligue Final.

It was the second straight final for Sochaux, who had lost to Monaco the previous season, and the first one for Nantes. The teams exchanged a pair of early goals, with forward Grégory Pujol striking first for Nantes in the 13th minute, then defender Sylvain Monsoreau heading Sochaux level five minutes later. Nantes looked likely to regain the lead several times, but were repeatedly denied by Sochaux goalkeeper Teddy Richert (pictured), including one point-blank save against Nantes midfielder Frédéric de Rocha late in the match.

Locked at 1-1 after extra time, the game went to a penalty shootout. Still level after six kicks, Sochaux defender Maxence Flachez sent his attempt over the crossbar. The miss opened the door for Nantes' next kicker, goalkeeper and captain Mickaël Landreau, to seal the win. But he tried a simple chip that Richert saved with ease. After Sochaux captain Benoît Pedretti beat Landreau on the next attempt, Richert once again made a crucial stop, diving to his right to save Nantes' last shot and end the match as a Sochaux victory.

7 April 1981 - It Was The Best Of Runs ...

On 7 April 1981, Auxerre defeated Nantes 0-1, ending a five-year home unbeaten streak for the hosts.

The streak began in June 1976 under manager José Arribas, in the last month of his 16-year tenure in charge of the club. On 4 June, Nantes managed a 1-1 draw with Nice, then won their only remaining home match of the season, a 1-0 victory over Nîmes on the season's last day.

Over the summer, Jean Vincent replaced Arribas and presided over the remainder of the unbeaten streak, staying with the club until 1982. During that time, the run extended to a Ligue 1-record 92 consecutive matches and included two league titles (1977, 1980) and one Coupe de France (1979). The streak-ending loss to Auxerre in 1981 likely cost Nantes another league title, as they finished that season in second, two points behind Saint-Etienne.

Nantes' 92-match streak is one of the best home league unbeaten runs, within striking distance of PSV (93) and Red Star Belgrade (96), but still well behind the top mark of 121 set by Real Madrid from 1957 to 1965.

10 July 1989 - No Word Yet On How The Nantes Supporters Reacted

On 10 July 1989, Scottish striker and former Celtic star Mo Johnston signed for Rangers, igniting a firestorm of controversy across both sides of the Old Firm.

Johnston had been born and raised in Glasgow. In 1984, after beginning his professional career with Partick Thistle (1981-84) and then Watford (1983-84), he signed for Celtic, the team he had supported as a child. He was an immediate success for the Hoops, scoring 52 goals in 140 league appearances and helping them to the Scottish Cup trophy in 1985 and the league title in 1986. In 1987, he transferred to Nantes, where he played for two seasons.

In 1989, near the end of his second season with Nantes, Johnston announced his intention to return to Scotland and play again for Celtic. But just days after reaffirming his commitment to Celtic at a press conference at Celtic Park, he signed with their bitter rivals, Rangers. The move shocked and angered Celtic supporters, many of whom felt betrayed by a player whom they had previously supported and who had himself grown up supporting Celtic. He reportedly received several death threats.

Celtic supporters weren't the only ones upset, however. Many Rangers supporters were incensed that the club had signed a former Celtic player, due in no small part to the fact that he was a Roman Catholic. The Old Firm has traditionally broken down along religious and political lines, with Catholics and supporters of Scots-Irish independence mostly favoring Celtic, while Protestants and British Unionists generally side with Rangers. When Johnston signed for Rangers, he became the first Catholic to do so since the end of World War I (and had the highest profile of any previous Catholic signing). Thus, many Rangers fans reacted to the news of Johnston's signing by burning their scarves and season tickets in protest.

Johnston played only two seasons for Rangers, scoring 46 goals in 100 appearances and winning two league titles. He subsequently played for Everton (1991-93), Hearts (1993-94), Falkirk (1994-96), and the Kansas City Wizards (1996-2001), before retiring as a player and moving into management, first with the New York Red Bulls (2005-06), then Toronto FC (2006-08).

Johnston's last-minute switch went unexplained for years until 2001, when his former agent Bill McMurdo revealed that the decision was neither his nor Johnston's, but was instead made by the company that owned Johnston's contract. According to McMurdo, that company simply sold him to the highest bidder, who happened to be Rangers.

10 February 1991 - The Hair Was Holding Him Back

On 10 February 1991, Zinedine Zidane scored his first professional goal to help Cannes beat Nantes.

Nineteen years old at the time, Zidane had been with Cannes since joining them as a youth player in 1986. He signed a professional contract with them in 1989 and made his first-team debut against Nantes that May, one of only two appearances that season.

He didn't play for the first team at all the next season, but featured regularly in 1990-91, making a total of 31 appearances across all competitions. His only goal, though, came in a 2-1 league win over Nantes. Afterward, club chairman Alain Pedretti gave Zidane a car, honoring a promise he'd made to the midfielder for his first scoring strike.

Zidane left Cannes for Bordeaux in 1992, then spent time with Juventus (1996-2001) and Real Madrid (2001-06) while becoming one of the world's greatest players. He went on to score a total of 125 goals in 681 career club appearances, while winning the Ballon d'Or in 1998 after leading France to victory in the World Cup.

17 April 2004 - So Sweet For Sochaux

On 17 April 2004, Sochaux won their first trophy in 40 years, beating Nantes on penalties in the Coupe de la Ligue Final.

It was the second straight final for Sochaux, who had lost to Monaco the previous season, and the first one for Nantes. The teams exchanged a pair of early goals, with forward Grégory Pujol striking first for Nantes in the 13th minute, then defender Sylvain Monsoreau heading Sochaux level five minutes later. Nantes looked likely to regain the lead several times, but were repeatedly denied by Sochaux goalkeeper Teddy Richert (pictured), including one point-blank save against Nantes midfielder Frédéric de Rocha late in the match.

Locked at 1-1 after extra time, the game went to a penalty shootout. Still level after six kicks, Sochaux defender Maxence Flachez sent his attempt over the crossbar. The miss opened the door for Nantes' next kicker, goalkeeper and captain Mickaël Landreau, to seal the win. But he tried a simple chip that Richert saved with ease. After Sochaux captain Benoît Pedretti beat Landreau on the next attempt, Richert once again made a crucial stop, diving to his right to save Nantes' last shot and end the match as a Sochaux victory.

7 April 1981 - It Was The Best Of Runs ...

On 7 April 1981, Auxerre defeated Nantes 0-1, ending a five-year home unbeaten streak for the hosts.

The streak began in June 1976 under manager José Arribas, in the last month of his 16-year tenure in charge of the club. On 4 June, Nantes managed a 1-1 draw with Nice, then won their only remaining home match of the season, a 1-0 victory over Nîmes on the season's last day.

Over the summer, Jean Vincent replaced Arribas and presided over the remainder of the unbeaten streak, staying with the club until 1982. During that time, the run extended to a Ligue 1-record 92 consecutive matches and included two league titles (1977, 1980) and one Coupe de France (1979). The streak-ending loss to Auxerre in 1981 likely cost Nantes another league title, as they finished that season in second, two points behind Saint-Etienne.

Nantes' 92-match streak is one of the best home league unbeaten runs, within striking distance of PSV (93) and Red Star Belgrade (96), but still well behind the top mark of 121 set by Real Madrid from 1957 to 1965.