Danilo Pereira scored the late winner as Paris Saint-Germain consolidated their top spot in Ligue 1 with a 2-1 win over fourth-placed Lorient on Sunday.
The win restored PSG’s five-point lead over Angers on Saturday. PSG coach Christoph Galtier made four changes to the team that beat Juventus on Wednesday.
One of the stars who held his position, Kylian Mbappé, resigned with five minutes remaining, but Galtier insisted the France striker had no World Cup-threatening injuries.
“I’m tired of the routine of the game,” Galtier said.
“It’s a very tight schedule and there are some concerns. At this point before the World Cup, everyone is listening to their body. It can be scary.”
PSG started attacking aggressively. Neymar gave PSG nine minutes. Brazil was occupied and approved goalkeeper Juvon Mwogo. The ball went past Hugo Equiquique, who replaced Lionel Messi in the starting line-up. Ekikike danced around Mwogo and cut the ball back to Neymar who slotted the ball into the net. It was Neymar’s 11th league goal of the season and became joint top scorer in Ligue 1 alongside Mbappé.
The goalkeeper of the Swiss national team, who reached the final of the World Cup, was injured in front of the goal. Lorient manager Regis Le Bris said: “There are inevitably some concerns, but it’s a bit early to judge.”
Mbogo was replaced by former Arsenal goalkeeper Vito Mannone, who made a save before Sergio Ramos header, Mbappe concedes and Equiquique before halftime. Gedeon Kalulu also blocked a shot by Ashraf Hakimi just before the break.
The Parisians, who have played four defenders in their last four games and reverted to five defenders, did not give the hosts many chances in the first half. “The first one was good for us,” Galtier said. “We started very high and we won the ball quickly.” “We started scoring and we had three or four chances to score second. “When you play in a streak, you have to start strong and try to hurt your opponent.”
“Go for Victory!”
Lorient, who held PSG to a draw at home last December and finished last in Ligue 1 last season, did not relent.
They leveled in the 53rd minute when Terem Moffi ran onto a Vincent Le Goff pass and fired a shot inside the near post and into Gianluigi Donnarumma’s top goal. – “Aim for Victory” –
The Nigerian striker went close to making it two after four minutes when his shot hit the crossbar.
PSG strengthened their defense but struggled to get forward. They had to rely on accumulated parts. In Neymar’s corner, Pereira utilized an easy marker and restored PSG’s lead with a powerful header in the 81st minute. Neymar’s assist was his ninth of the season, second in the league behind Messi’s absence.
“He puts in a lot of effort,” Galtier said. “Obviously he’s very motivated for the World Cup… But I don’t see any reason why he won’t play in the second season.”
This defeat marked their first rival, Lorient, on a three match unbeaten run.
Marseille finished 4th in a row and beat Laurent Blanc’s Lyon 1-0 to move up to 4th behind 6th placed Laurier.