Leader PSG beats Nantes to stretch winning streak to 8 games in Ligue 1
PARIS (AP) — Paris Saint-Germain beat Nantes 2-1 for an eighth straight win in the French league on Saturday.
Meanwhile, 10-man Monaco downed Rennes 2-1 and leapfrogged Nice into second place.
PSG substitute Randal Kolo Muani scored the winner by converting a rebound in the 83rd minute after goalkeeper Alban Lafont saved a header from Lucas Hernandez.
Bradley Barcola gave PSG the lead by rounding Marcus Coco to slot into the far corner just before halftime. But mid-table Nantes grew bolder in the second half and Egypt striker Mostafa Mohamed equalized by heading home a corner in the 55th.
“Bradley Barcola is the present and the future of this club, and we like young players joining us to know that we are going to give them confidence and minutes,” PSG coach Luis Enrique said. “Bradley Barcola was superb tonight. He was our best player in one-on-one situations. He scored an exceptional goal and it was a really good performance.”
PSG played at a comfortable pace, maybe thinking about a decisive Champions League game at Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday, and created very little in the first half.
PSG extended its league lead to six points over Monaco.
Monaco striker Folarin Balogun got hold of a loose ball after a goalmouth scramble in the 51st and set up Vanderson who side-footed home against Rennes. Vanderson's joy didn't last long as he received a second yellow card in the 74th for a late challenge on Mahamadou Nagida.
Youssouf Fofana doubled Monaco's lead in the 85th by taking a pass from Balogun and roaming forward to guide the ball into the bottom corner.
Rennes pulled one back with a penalty from Benjamin Bourigeaud in the 90th after Fofana brought down Desire Doue.
Monaco goalkeeper Philipp Kohn preserved the win by saving a header from Amine Gouiri and a powerful strike from Nagida in stoppage time.
Rennes had European ambitions at the start of the season but will have to look over its shoulder as the result left the host in 12th place, three points above the relegation playoff spot.
“There has clearly been a loss of confidence for weeks,” Rennes coach Julien Stephan told Amazon Prime. “We must refind some consistency and confidence, improve the quality of our play and be tougher in the game, much tougher, because we were dominated in the duels.”
On Friday, Montpellier drew with Lens 0-0. Lens fans were able to attend the game in Montpellier after the Council of State, France’s highest administrative court, suspended the ban on away supporters. On Thursday, the French government and local authorities banned away supporters from attending some games this weekend after the death of a supporter in Nantes last weekend. But the National Supporters' Association, an umbrella organization for soccer fan groups, took legal action and successfully appealed to the Council of State.
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