Paris Saint-Germain had no problem beating Le Havre 2-0 to extend its lead at the top of the French league standings on Sunday despite playing for more than 80 minutes with 10 men after goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma was sent off for a reckless tackle.
Goals from Kylian Mbappe and Vitinha ensured a seventh consecutive league win for Luis Enrique’s team. PSG has a four-point cushion at the top after second-place Nice was handed its first loss this season on Saturday, a 1-0 defeat at Nantes.
Le Havre got off to a strong start with several good moves but lacked accuracy to inflict any damage. The hosts produced 22 shots, but only seven of them were on target.
Donnarumma was sent off following a reckless foul outside his box. The Italy goalkeeper came out of the area as he tried to clear a long ball with a very high tackle, but instead made contact with Le Havre forward Josue Casimir’s face.
Referee Bastien Dechepy showed him a red card and Bradley Barcola made way for substitute goalie Arnau Tenas, who was happy to keep a clean sheet on his debut.
“It’s wonderful,” he said. “I’d like to thank everyone for this opportunity, it’s an incredible day today. The team was strong for every minute played, and I was able to stop the opposition’s shots.”
PSG broke the deadlock on the break after Lee Kang-in set up Ousmane Dembele down the right side. The winger then crossed the ball for Mbappe, who controlled with his right foot and curled a shot into the net from the edge of the box in the 22nd minute. It was Mbappe’s 15th league goal this season.
Vitinha completed PSG’s win in the 88th minute from Manuel Ugarte’s assist.
Goals from Takumi Minamino and Wissam Ben Yedder gave Monaco a hard-fought 2-0 win against Montpellier.
Monaco moved within two points of its Cote d’Azur rival Nice.
Minamino put the hosts in front in the ninth minute against a gritty Montpellier side which was later reduced to 10 players following Boubakar Kouyate’s dismissal after a VAR check with 21 minutes left to play. Ben Yedder made it 2-0 in stoppage time.
Elsewhere, Romain Del Castillo scored a brace as Brest beat Clermont 3-0, while Toulouse and Lorient drew 1-1.
Also Sunday, the French league (LFP) mourned the death of a Nantes supporter who was killed before the match between Nantes and Nice on Saturday in the latest incident to mar French soccer this season.
“The LFP would like to express its most sincere condolences to the victim’s family and friends, and to the FC Nantes club,” the league said.
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – Associated Press)
