Three for Lacazette and two for Yanga-Mbiwa as Lyon take stranglehold on second

Alexandre Lacazette scored his first hat-trick of the season as Lyon all but secured second place in Ligue 1 with a resounding 6-1 demolition of 10-man Monaco.A surprise brace from former Newcastle defender Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa and Rachid Ghezzal's earlier opener ensured victory.And with their goal difference now superior by 22, it as good as ensured ensured Lyon's automatic place in the Champions League group stages.Monaco had to play almost three quarters of the game with 10 men after Lacina Traore was shown two yellow cards in the opening stages and Ricard Carvalho's second goal of the season was all the visiting fans had to cheer on a disappointing evening for the principality side.Les Gones could not have made a better start when, on three minutes, Andrea Raggi's slip allowed Ghezzal to gather Lacazette's pass before powering the ball beyond Danijel Subasic from inside the area.And just five minutes later, the hosts doubled their lead when Lacazette slammed Sergi Darder's delivery beyond Subasic for his ninth goal in as many games.Monaco were struggling to cope with the speed and movement of Lyon's attack and it could easily have been three soon after but Lacazette mistimed a volley from Ghezzal's clever pass to send a weak effort wide of the target.The visitors' cause was not helped when Traore was given his marching orders on 23 minutes for two quick-fire yellow cards, firstly fouling Yanga-Mbiwa before catching goalkeeper Anthony Lopes with a late challenge.Lyon had a third ruled out shortly after, with Gnarly Cornet unable to keep himself onside before netting, as the hosts threatened to run away with the game inside the opening half-hour.The inevitable happened, though, on 34 minutes, when Yanga-Mbiwa rose highest from Maxime Gonalons' corner to head beyond Subasic for a third Lyon goal - his first for the club.And Bruno Genesio did not have to wait long for his side to add a fourth when Christophe Jallet's clever pass released Lacazette and the in-form hitman cleverly lifted the ball over Subasic, prompting wild scenes in the Stade Lumiere's stands.Monaco had a rare sight of goal soon after when a loose Lopes clearance fell Helder Costa's way but the young Portuguese forward's first-time effort flew wide of the target with the goal gaping.But the visitors went one better shortly before the break when Lopes punched Bernardo Silva's free-kick onto the head of Carvalho, whose quick reactions reduced the deficit for Leonardo Jardim's side.After a brief show of Monaco spirit early in the second half, the hosts restored their four-goal cushion just before the hour mark when Jallet's close-range effort came back off the upright into the path of Yanga-Mbiwa, who powered the ball into an empty net for his second.Monaco almost offered an immediate reply but Nabil Dirar saw his scuffed effort come back off the left post before Lopes instinctively hacked the ball clear.Then, with 10 minutes left to play, Lyon added a sixth goal as Lacazette secured his hat-trick, tapping the ball over the line after his initial effort came back off the post.