Key Takeaways
- PSG sit four points clear of Lens with only five league rounds left.
- Seven fixtures in 23 days, including a Champions League semi-final, test the squad’s depth.
- Lens chase a first Coupe de France crown in 28 years while still eyeing the league prize.
Paris Saint-Germain’s 3-0 stroll past Nantes on Wednesday kept them on course for another Ligue 1 trophy, yet the calendar is now their fiercest opponent. Captain Marquinhos warned that Lens refuse to fade after the champions stretched the gap to four points with five matches left.
Coach Luis Enrique hailed Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, whose double took his season tally to 16 and lit up Parc des Princes. The Georgian’s weaving second strike, finished after a one-two with Ousmane Dembélé, drew praise as the night’s standout moment.
Fixture congestion is self-made. Two postponed league games, moved to give PSG breathing space for European ties, now return in a cluster. The result: nine matches in 28 days, a sprint that could decide silverware on two fronts.
Rotation will be vital. January recruit Dro Fernández, 18, is the only mid-season signing, while academy graduates have seen minutes shrink through injury or form. Warren Zaïre-Emery remains the exception, filling in at left-back against Nantes.
Lens, meanwhile, keep applying heat. A Friday win over Brest would shove pressure back to PSG 24 hours later. Pierre Sage’s side also reached the Coupe de France final, their first in 28 years, after a 4-1 rout of Toulouse. Florian Thauvin starred in that triumph, offering a shot at history even if the league slips away.
Nice, battling relegation, still dream of cup glory too. New-boy Elye Wahi’s brace sank Strasbourg in the other semi, giving interim boss Claude Puel an outside shot at a farewell trophy.
