Olympique Lyonnais had Jeff Reine-Adelaide and Moussa Dembele to thank for early goals that secured a 2-1 home win over Nice.
They battled for an hour with 10 men to victory in a heated Ligue 1 clash at the Groupama Stadium on Saturday.
French winger Reine-Adelaide claimed his first goal since August to put Lyon ahead in the 10th minute as he produced a cool low finish from the edge of the area.
Dembele slotted in his 10th league goal of the season with a penalty before the hosts had defender Fernando Marcal sent off for a high boot on youngster Hichem Boudaoui in the 34th minutes.
Nice’s Danish striker, Kasper Dolberg, cut the deficit with 12 minutes left but hopes of a comeback were hit when defender Patrick Burner was dismissed for a second booking in the 86th minutes.
Lyon held on to collect their third win in four league games as they climbed to the seventh position with 19 points from 14 games.
Paris St Germain lead the standings with 33 points after a 2-0 home win over Lille on Friday.
