Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 Lille: Report, result and goals as Dembele sends PSG top of Ligue 1
Ousmane Dembele was the star of the show as PSG went two points clear at the top.
Paris Saint-Germain moved at least temporarily top of Ligue 1 as they saw off Lille 3-0 at the Parc des Princes thanks to a masterclass from Ousmane Dembele.
PSG put the disappointment of crashing out of the Coupe de France at the hands of neighbours Paris FC firmly behind them, with Ballon d’Or winner Dembele shining once again in the City of Lights.
Dembele opened the scoring in the 13th minute, firing in off the post from the edge of the area to settle Luis Enrique’s men after a nervy start.
He then sent the Parc des Princes crowd into raptures just under 20 minutes into the second half, demonstrating artistry and precision to produce a high lobbed finish over Berke Ozer, who could only watch in awe as Lille were given a mountain to climb.
The visitors never looked fighting back, and PSG added a late third through Bradley Barcola as they claimed a victory that sends them two points clear of surprise package Lens, who face Auxerre on Saturday.
Dembele sends PSG to summit
PSG were given a fright when Olivier Giroud sent an impudent lob against the crossbar at the same end where Dembele would produce his goal of the season contender.
Ethan Mbappe was denied by Lucas Chevalier on the follow-up, and Kylian Mbappe’s younger brother then brought another near-post save from his former team-mate as Lille sought to stun the home crowd.
Those hopes diminished when Lille lost possession deep in their own half and Vitinha played the ball to Dembele, who rattled home the opener with a fierce effort in off the post.
PSG struggled to make the most of their obvious superiority after going ahead, though Nuno Mendes had the ball in the net 12 minutes into the second half, only to see his effort ruled out for offside.
Seven minutes later, though, Dembele doubled PSG’s lead in unbelievable fashion, skilfully keeping the ball from three Lille defenders before proceeding to loft the ball of each of them and Ozer, who could only look on helplessly as he failed to get back on his line in time to keep out a wondrous finish.
Desire Doue, credited for the assist for that display of individual brilliance, then went close to making the scoreline more emphatic, but the third goal that ensured a more accurate reflection of the gulf between the two teams did not come until injury time, when Barcola pressed Aissa Mandi into an error and rifled into an empty net.