Bastia moved closer to securing their position in Ligue 1 for next season as a late strike from Floyd Ayite gave them a narrow 1-0 victory over Saint-Etienne.
The Blues almost took a third-minute lead when Gael Danic fired inches wide of goal following Francois Modesto's cross.
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On 28 minutes, Bastia again threatened a breakthrough when Francois Kamano's shot was saved by French international Stephane Ruffier.
Saint-Etienne came close to edging ahead before the interval as Landry N'Guemo saw his strike turned away by Alphonse Areola.
However, Bastia shaded possession and continued to enjoy the majority of goalscoring opportunities, with Ayite unleashing a shot from long range that Ruffier did well to keep out.
Ayite finally found a way through with six minutes remaining as he drove the ball into the bottom corner of the Saint-Etienne net.
The Corsicans are now six points clear of the bottom three in Ligue 1.
Chris O'Keefe
