Paris Saint-Germain continued their march towards the French football league title for the 11th time in its history and broke the domestic record, beating Lens 3-1 on Saturday in the 31st stage of the tournament in a night in which the duo of Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe starred.
And raise Saint-Germain tally to 72 points compared to 63 for Lens, who may lose the runner-up in favor of Marseille, who is two points behind him and meets Troyes Sunday.
If the Parisian side are crowned this season, they will hold the record for the number of titles (11) that they currently share with Saint-Etienne with 10 each.
The 19th minute saw a turn of the game with Lens player Abdessamad Salles sent off for a foul on Moroccan right-back Achraf Hakimi.
PSG took advantage of the numerical deficit in the ranks of his rival to open the scoring through Kylian Mbappe after exchanging the ball with Portuguese midfielder Vitinha before shooting with the help of the post in the net in the 31st minute.
Mbappe becomes Paris Saint-Germain's all-time top scorer in the French league with 139 goals 🙌❤️ #French_League #باريس_سان_جيرمان pic.twitter.com/FFAonfloNS
— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS) April 15, 2023
The goal is Mbappe's 20th this season, leaving him alone at the top of the scorers charts, one ahead of Lille's Canadian striker Jonathan David.
Mbappe became Paris Saint-Germain's all-time top scorer in the French league with 139 goals.
PSG sealed the outcome of the match when Vitigna added the second goal with a shot from 25 meters, scoring his first goal of the season in the 37th minute, before Argentina's Lionel Messi added a third after a heel pass from Mbappe in the 40th minute.
This is the 495th goal in Messi's career at the level of the Spanish and French league championships, equaling the record for the number of goals in the history of major leagues recorded in the name of Portuguese Cristiano Ronaldo.
Tiki-taka between Mbappe and Messi and the latter shakes the net of Lons 😮💙 #الدوري_الفرنسي #باريس_سان_جيرمان pic.twitter.com/NZVQrsUIZL
— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS) April 15, 2023
In the second half, Lens reduced the deficit through Poland's Przymiszło Frankowski from the penalty spot after a handball from Spaniard Fabian Ruiz inside the area in the 60th minute.
Rennes kept alive their hopes of playing at European level next season with an outright 3-0 win over Rennes.