Paris Saint-Germain moved to the top of Ligue 1 with a 2-0 victory over Lyon, while goalkeeper Matvey Safonov recorded his first clean sheet in six appearances for the Parisian club.
The eighth-round fixture was played on a Monday, an unusual scheduling decision caused by the situation on the streets of France. Paris police were concentrating on protests on Sunday, so the league’s headline match was moved back by a day. The absence of Champions League commitments this week allowed the change to be made.
PSG and Lyon began the game level on points, with the Ligue 1 table tightly packed. The leading nine teams had yet to establish a clear order in the standings.
PSG dominated possession in the early stages, with Doue making an immediate impact. He drove into the penalty area surrounded by four defenders before shooting while falling, but Greif gathered comfortably.
Desiree then delivered a cross from the left which Ferran Torres narrowly failed to reach, before Fabian Ruiz sent a shot from near the edge of the penalty area just wide of the left post.
Lyon looked to threaten on the counter-attack. Nuamah tested Safonov with a straightforward effort from outside the box, which the Russian goalkeeper held. The visitors later created more dangerous moments around the former Krasnodar goalkeeper’s goal.
On 22 minutes, Akliouch and Joao Neves won the ball inside Lyon’s penalty area, allowing Ferran Torres to shoot, although his effort went straight at Greif. Lyon soon produced a more serious threat at the other end.
Safonov did not make clean contact with the ball while coming for a cross and Nuamah was able to shoot. Warren Zaire-Emery came to his goalkeeper’s aid by blocking the attempt.
Lyon went closer on 31 minutes when Duranville was given room to shoot. The ball was heading towards the bottom-right corner, but Safonov made an important save and turned it behind for a corner. Greif also denied Akliouch at his near post before the interval.
PSG continued to press after the restart. Joao Neves attempted an acrobatic effort after Hakimi’s pass from the right, but failed to hit the target. Vitinha then sent a shot from the edge of the area straight into Greif’s hands, while the Lyon goalkeeper also saved Ferran Torres’ effort after Doue had played him in down the right channel.
A draw would not have been enough to take PSG top, and manager Luis Enrique’s substitutions ultimately changed the match. He introduced Godts and Mayulu, with the latter breaking the deadlock within minutes.
Mayulu received the ball near the edge of the penalty area and finished into the near corner to make it 1-0. Twelve minutes later, Godts completed a counter-attack from a similar position, placing his shot into the far, right-hand corner.
The result puts PSG three points clear of Lyon at the summit. They lead nearest challengers Rennes by one point, while Safonov has finally kept a clean sheet after conceding in each of his previous five matches for the club.