PARIS: Second-placed Lens made it 10 straight home wins in the French league after beating struggling Auxerre 1-0 on Saturday.
Poland winger Przemyslaw Frankowski nailed a penalty kick in the 59th minute with a powerful strike past goalkeeper Benoit Costil, who guessed the right way.
Auxerre finished with 10 players after defender Isaak Toure was sent off midway through the second half, for a second yellow card after fouling forward Florian Sotoca.
Northern side Lens, who have won all of their home games so far, moved to three points behind leader Paris Saint-Germain. Lens extended their unbeaten league run to 9 games but still lead third-placed Marseille only by two points after the southern side beat Lorient 3-1 at home for a sixth straight league win.