Stade Rennais 0-1 Paris Saint-Germain | Match Report

​Paris Saint-Germain stretched their lead at the top of Ligue 1 to 10 points as they narrowly defeated Stade Rennais at Roazhon Park.

Angel Di Maria's second half strike was the difference between the two sides in what has been a tricky game for the visitors in recent years.

Les Parisiens made a few changes going into the game, some of them forced, as Zlatan Ibrahimovic was benched after being struck by flu. Whereas Rennes welcomed back number one goalkeeper, Benoit Costil, after his lengthy injury kept him out for two months.

First half dominance by the visitors

The returning Costil had only stood between the sticks for one minute before having to make his first save, and a vital one at that. Di Maria's deflected low cross to the penalty spot forced Costil to react quickly and block the ball with his legs.

The first bit of catching practice for the returning keeper came through a shot from defender, Maxwell. After receiving the second ball following a free kick, the Brazilian opted to place the ball from distance which meant easy going for Costil.

It took a while for Rennes to even get as much as a sniff at goal. The game plan was there fall all to see, and that was soak up any pressure from PSG and counter using the pace of of Giovanni Sio up front. The Rennes top scorer received the ball on the counter from Abdoulaye Doucoure, and ran into the corner of the box. However, the Ivorian had no options for a pass and chose to shoot. Unfortunately for the striker, it went by the far post.

Ezequiel Lavezzi had been quiet for large parts of the first half. His chance which flashed by the face of goal from close range certainly woke the stadium up. The winger created half a yard to shoot after turning Pedro Mendes inside out. Costil got the slightest of touches on the ball to help guide the shot out of play.

Yacouba Sylla and Abdoulaye Doucoure both passed up decent chances before the break. Sylla reached the ball following a PSG clearance and hit straight down the throat for Kevin Trapp to catch. While Doucoure manufactured his opportunity to shoot, only to chip the ball over the bar from just inside the box.

PSG get vital goal in the second half

PSG continued their dominance on the match. Rennes were struggling to clear the ball as play remained in their final third. Although the champions had the greater share of possession, lack of movement and a camped Rennes defence restricted chances for the visitors.

After poking around the Rennes penalty area for 30 minutes, PSG finally took advantage of an exhausting Rennes back line by going ahead. All credit should go to substitute, Marco Verratti, as he drove into the Rennes box from the wing to pass into the centre where a running Di Maria slotted the ball into the far right of the net.

The scorer was looking for another to double the PSG lead. Unfortunately he didn't hit his next effort with the same success as his previous one. Albeit, the shot was from 30 yards and went well over the crossbar.

In an attempt to get the game back to a level standing, more attacking prowess was required from a Rennes standpoint. The Bretons looked to the bench. Brazilian winger, Pedro Henrique, was given the task and he almost lived up to it. From the off he was lively and used his pace to press as well as run at the tiring Paris legs. His first opportunity was from his own doing as he picked the ball up in the central, held off his opponents to shoot from outside the box, but the ball went narrowly wide. Finally before the last whistle, the ball fell to Henrique deep inside the box from a lobbed Armand pass but the end shot was straight at Trapp.

Next week Henrique and his Rennes squad travel to face the surprising Angers SCO while PSG contend with Champions League action in their next match away to Real Madrid.

#staderennais #psg #01