Nantes 0-3 PSG: Player ratings as Lionel Messi inspires routine win
By Tom Gott
PSG secured another emphatic victory on Saturday evening as they saw off ten-man Nantes 3-0.
Kylian Mbappe bagged two either side of half time, with Nuno Mendes adding a third after the break, to keep the impressive start to life under Christophe Galtier alive.
It took PSG a little while to get going, with Nantes' high press forcing them back a little too often, and Samuel Moutoussamy and Mostafa Mohamed both weren't far off from giving the hosts an early lead as his effort fizzed over the bar.
14 minutes in and Danilo Pereira had PSG's first real chance of the game. The centre-back collected a ball from Kylian Mbappe and fired an effort on goal, drawing an excellent save from Alban Lafont.
Just moments later, Mbappe was wheeling away in celebration. Cutting in from the left wing, he picked up a pass from Lionel Messi and bent his effort across goal and into the top corner to put PSG ahead.
Things went from bad to worse for Nantes as full-back Fabio was shown a straight red card for a high challenge on Vitinha midway through the second half, setting the home side up for a very long evening.
PSG tried to make their numerical advantage count and nearly had a second before the break. Mbappe came close to feeding Messi and only a desperate lunge from Andrei Girotto stopped the Argentine from connecting.
That second goal came five minutes into the second half. Mbappe nearly ruined the move with his poor attempt to square for Messi, who managed to collect the ball and played it back to his strike partner to tap home.
Substitute Nuno Mendes popped up with the third. The left-back collected the ball after Neymar's strike hit the post and fired past Lafont and into the back of the net.
Nantes had the odd foray forwards but they never really looked like grabbing a consolation and Galtier's side ultimately cruised to three points.
PSG player ratings vs Nantes (3-4-1-2)
GK: Gianluigi Donnarumma - 6/10 - Didn't have a whole lot to do.
CB: Danilo Pereira - 7/10 - Enjoying this centre-back role but still had plenty of opportunities to attack. Unfortunate not to get himself on the scoresheet.
CB: Marquinhos - 6/10 - A bit uncomfortable at times. Needed support from Danilo a little too often for a player of his quality.
CB: Presnel Kimpembe - 7/10 - Led by example on the outside of the defence. Coped well with Nantes' energy.
RM: Achraf Hakimi - 6/10 - Made some nice runs but wasn't always involved, and some of his decisions in the final third were a little infuriating.
CM: Vitinha - 6/10 - Did well but was unable to carry on after Fabio's challenge.
CM: Marco Verratti - 7/10 - Constantly looking around to find the right ball to play. Really impressive with his link-up play.
LM: Juan Bernat - 6/10 - Decent link-up with Messi but didn't really offer enough going forwards before being taken off at the break.
AM: Lionel Messi - 8/10 - Cooking under Galtier. This free role allows Messi to roam around and do whatever he wants, and the rewards for that were two assists for Mbappe.
ST: Kylian Mbappe - 7/10 - Some ugly passing but can't fault his effort in front of goal. His first strike was sublime.
ST: Pablo Sarabia - 5/10 - Buzzed around but was the obvious weak link in PSG's star-studded attack.
SUB: Renato Sanches (33' for Vitinha) - 6/10 - Didn't have the kind of impact he'd have wanted but did nothing wrong really.
SUB: Nuno Mendes (46' for Bernat) - 7/10 - Offered more going forward than Bernat and took his goal well.
SUB: Sergio Ramos (62' for Verratti) - 6/10 - Didn't really have a whole lot to do.
SUB: Neymar (62' for Mbappe) - 6/10 - Thundered his effort off the post to set up Mendes.
SUB: Hugo Ekitike (71' for Sarabia) - 6/10 - Found it hard to get involved in the game but should have been handed a great chance by Neymar, who declined to pass to the youngster.
Manager: Christophe Galtier - 8/10 - Messi in the free role continues to be a genius decision. Didn't even need to do anything else. Just let Messi be Messi.