Paris Saint-Germain opened a nine-point gap at the top of Ligue 1 with a 3-1 win over RC Lens in a top-of-the-table clash on Saturday evening.
Spaniard Fabian Ruiz was the host sole change from their 2-0 win over OGC Nice, as he took the spot of the injured Renato Sanches in the middle of the park.
It wasn't a good start for the visiting team who were down to ten-men inside 20 minutes after Salis Abdul Samed saw red for bringing down Achraf Hakimi in a dangerous area.
The host made their advantage count ten minutes later as Kylian Mbappe broke the deadlock where he picked up Lionel Messi's forward pass and combined with Vitinha to fire home.
Vitinha helped himself to the score-sheet seven minutes thereafter where he orchestrated a yard of space from a short-corner and thundered in a scorcher from way out.
With five minutes to halftime, PSG secured a third after Lionel Messi rolled up a yard of space from close-range following Mbappe's back-heel pass and applied a calm finish.
Lens put on two changes after halftime in Jean Onana for Angelo Fulgini and Florian Sotoca ahead of Adrien Thomasson, with the host unchanged from the first spell.
The visitors launched a reply on 60 minutes as Przemyslaw Frankowski tucked in from the penalty spot after Ruiz was said to have handled in the area according to the Video Assistant Review (VAR) team.
Lens continued to see more of the ball particularly in advanced territories, but weren't able to increase their cushion as the league leaders stayed compact at the back.
In the end, PSG snatched victory to open up a nine-point gap at the top of the table and over the second-place Lens.
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