Montpelier continued its habit of troubling the leading teams by beating Nice 2-0 in the French league on Sunday.
Montpellier is unbeaten so far against the top three from last season. It has drawn against defending champion Monaco and runner-up Paris Saint-Germain and comfortably beaten Nice in successive games.
Benin attacking midfielder Stephane Sessegnon and Belgium forward Isaac Mbenza scored in the second half with their first goals of the campaign.
Sessegnon was once considered among the biggest talents in the French league when he joined Paris Saint-Germain in 2008, but his career never really took off despite several years in the English Premier League with Sunderland and West Bromwich Albion.
The 33-year-old Sessegnon showed a glimpse of his ability, however, with a ferocious strike from 25 meters (yards) that flew into the top right corner in the 55th minute.
The win moved Montpellier up to mid-table, while Nice drops down to a miserable 14th place after its fifth defeat so far.
Nice offered little threat, with Mario Balotelli well contained by the home defense. When the former Inter Milan and Manchester City striker did get a chance in the first half, he was thwarted by goalkeeper Benjamin Lecomte's sprawling save.
RANIERI TOUCH
Nantes is resolute, well organized, opportunist and tough to beat under coach Claudio Ranieri.
Sound familiar? So was unheralded Leicester when Ranieri guided it to the Premier League title in 2015-16 in one of the greatest upsets in soccer history.
Ranieri has little hope of winning the French title this season, however, faced with the attacking power of Paris Saint-Germain.
After losing the first two league games, Ranieri's side is unbeaten in seven and sits comfortably in fourth place following Sunday's 1-1 draw at Bordeaux.
Nantes is level on 17 points with third-place Saint-Etienne, which has a better goal difference, and only two behind second-place Monaco. PSG has 25 points.
Burkina Faso center forward Prejuce Nakoulma put Nantes ahead with a close-range finish in first-half injury time, his first goal of the season.
But a fine run and shot from Brazilian forward Malcolm — his fifth of the campaign — shortly after the break earned seventh-place Bordeaux a point.
Later Sunday, Marseille was looking for its fourth straight league win when it traveled to Strasbourg.
Television images from Canal Plus showed a brief clash between Marseille fans and riot police outside the stadium.
