Angers 0-3 Paris Saint-Germain: PSG win but title party delayed

Paris Saint-Germain earned a comfortable 3-0 win at Angers but were unable to start their Ligue 1 title party after Marseille defeated Nantes.

With their title rivals losing, and Kylian Mbappe and Sergio Ramos having got on the scoresheet, Mauricio Pochettino's men looked to be heading for a 10th championship at half-time.

But, while they extended their lead in the second period thanks to Marquinhos, they were ultimately denied the title thanks to a Marseille comeback. 

Instead, PSG must wait to celebrate an eighth success in 10 seasons, even if victory on that front still looks inevitable.

The visitors were hit with an early blow when Mauro Icardi pulled up in the warm-up, forcing Pochettino to bring Eric Ebimbe into his starting XI.

Angers looked ready to capitalise when Sofiane Boufal tested Keylor Navas from distance before passing a one-on-one chance wide of the post. 

Unfortunately, the former Southampton man lasted just 14 minutes before succumbing to injury, and PSG underlined their threat when Thilo Kehrer and Marquinhos both went close from Angel Di Maria corners.

That pressure ultimately told, with Mbappe making the breakthrough before the half-hour mark courtesy of a swift exchange of passes with Achraf Hakimi and a left-footed piledriver.

That meant PSG moved onto 11 goals scored from outside the box this season, and that Angers had conceded 10 – Ligue 1's best and worst records respectively. 

But the hosts almost had a long-distance goal of their own to treasure soon after, Mohamed-Ali Cho striking the post with a curler. 

Their failure to take that chance was punished before the break, however, Ramos heading home yet another delicious Di Maria cross from the left.

Unbeaten in their last 23 Ligue 1 games when leading at half-time (W22, D1), PSG showed no signs that an unexpected collapse might be on the cards after the restart.

They instead looked likelier to extend their lead, with Hakimi being denied after sneaking in behind early doors, while Mbappe forced a fine save with another powerful left-footer from inside the box soon after.

Hopes of an Angers fight-back were further extinguished when a penalty was overturned after a VAR review showed Kehrer making a clean challenge on Cho in the box. 

And so when Marquinhos headed home a Di Maria cross, even the late loss of Edouard Michu to a perhaps unfortunate red card did not make for a troublesome ending to a straightforward win for PSG.

What does it mean? PSG forced to wait

With 15 points separating PSG and Marseille with five games to go, they know that they can clinch the title next time out.

However, their title rivals' comeback win over Nantes has delayed the celebrations for another week.

Di Maria leads the charge

It felt like the visitors were going to score from every single cross Di Maria played in across his 86 minutes on the pitch.

And so it was no surprise to see him end the game with two assists and a whopping six key passes to his name.

Ramos gets his moment

It may not have been the easiest of seasons for Ramos, but he is at least getting to play a role in a run-in that will seal the title.

As well as scoring, the Spaniard regained possession nine times and had more touches (97) than any other player on the pitch.

What's next?

PSG will have a chance to finally secure the title when they host Lens on Saturday. Angers, meanwhile, travel to struggling Clermont on Sunday.