Paris (AFP)

Paris SG regained allure, beating Rennes (3-0) at the Parc des Princes on Saturday in Ligue 1, three days after its defeat in Leipzig in the Champions League.

Coach Thomas Tuchel is breathing, and with him a club that is preparing for a return from the truce under pressure.

Winning is the best remedy for difficult days, Tuchel knows well, he who opposes his fine series of Championship victories to the criticisms born of a complicated start in the European Cup.

Facing the Bretons, his team has chained an 8th consecutive success in L1 which consolidates it at the top of the standings, an additional argument for him to defend his position, where he seemed more and more isolated.

His players did not let go, delivering a neat, efficient performance, embellished by the achievements of Moise Kean (11th) and Angel di Maria (21st, 73rd) which allowed him to live a rather quiet evening.

The nightmare lived in the 2nd period in Leipzig (2-1) is forgotten, but new injuries will prevent him from dreaming too high: the limping outings of Idrissa Gueye (13th), Thilo Kehrer (36th) and Kean (60th) ) remind him of the current small size of his workforce.

Paris thus played the last half hour with only one training striker, Di Maria, aligned in front with Colin Dagba and Rafinha, a defender and a midfielder!

- Marquinhos central defender -

In this situation, any victory is good to take, especially when it comes to one of its pet peeves, the team that won the most at the Parc des Princes of the Qatari era (three times ).

But Rennes has reached its limits, interviews in the European Cup, between inefficiency and negligence.

Julien Stéphan's team, which has won only one of its last five matches, can be ejected from the podium on Sunday if Nice beats Monaco.

Paris has regained his confidence before a perilous streak: with the return match against Leipzig on November 24, and the trip to Manchester United a week later, PSG will play its European future as soon as it resumes.

The expected returns of Neymar, Kylian Mbappé, Marco Verratti or Mauro Icardi will surely give him a different face from that shown in Germany.

But the one displayed against Rennes, another resident of the C1, was not bad either.

He managed a new clean sheet, the 6th of the season in L1.

The repositioning of Marquinhos in central defense, alongside Abdou Diallo, after several freelancing in the middle which caused much talk, has borne fruit, in the absence of Presnel Kimpembe.

Danilo himself played well as a sentry when he came into play (62nd).

Mea culpa of the German coach or situation imposed by injuries?

Anyway, Tuchel has accumulated other good news, as in attack.

Kean has confirmed he's more than an understudy, scoring his 5th accomplishment of the season.

- Di Maria not far from the treble -

Angel di Maria also redeemed himself from his mixed match in Leipzig where he opened the scoring and missed a penalty.

"Fideo" signed the goal of the break, with a little dive, his special, well started by Ander Herrera.

He managed the double at the end of the match, with a strike from 25 meters to the ground which punished the apathy of the Rennes defense, who claimed a fault at the start of the action.

This goal, the 86th of his Parisian career, allows him to double the glory Safet Susic (1982-1991).

But "Dima" missed the icing on the cake: his sublime instantaneous recovery from 30 meters found the post of Alfred Gomis (14th).

Alongside the Di Maria festival, the heads of Steven Nzonzi (23rd, 28th), Damien Da Silva (90th + 2) or the attempt of Jérémy Doku (45th) seem very thin to console Rennes, who found that Paris, although back to the wall, still had some under the sole.

© 2020 AFP