Fourth-placed Lille secured a hard-fought 1-0 victory away to Paris FC on Sunday to stay firmly in the race for an automatic Champions League place in Ligue 1.
Belgian forward Matias Fernandez-Pardo converted a 26th-minute penalty after a foul on Romain Perraud, sending former Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper Kevin Trapp the wrong way with his spot kick.
The win puts Lille level on 57 points with third-placed Lyon, who beat Auxerre 3-2 on Saturday.
However, Lille will rue their narrow victory as they now have the same goal difference as Lyon, but the run-in favours Lille, who will face lower-table clubs Le Havre and Auxerre.
Lyon, on the other hand, still have to play Rennes, who are fifth and just a point behind and have their own European aspirations.
The top three teams in France earn Champions League places while the fourth-placed club goes into the qualifying rounds.
Metz staved off relegation for at least another week with an entertaining 4-4 draw away to Le Havre.
Gauthier Hein proved to be Metz's saviour, scoring in the 85th minute to bring the scores level, having earlier netted from the penalty spot.