PSG vs Rennes final score, result, highlights as Lionel Messi is ...

Karl Toko Ekambi and Arnaud Kalimuendo maintained Rennes' reputation as PSG's bogey team as they claimed a deserved 2-0 victory at the Parc des Princes.

PSG were seeking to extend their nine-point lead at the summit but laboured during Sunday's first half in the French capital, with Kylian Mbappe going closest for the hosts after he had a 23rd-minute strike ruled out for offside.

Both teams had success with long passes in behind the opposition defence and, in the final minute of the half, on-loan Lyon forward Toko Ekambi latched on to Benjamin Bourigeaud's raking ball and fired beyond Gianluigi Donnarumma.

The hosts were jeered at the interval and Messi came in for sustained catcalls from the home fans, whose mood was not improved by Kalimuendo finding a close-range finish against his former club. 

Christophe Galtier's side still had more than 50 minutes to find a reply at that point but failed to do so, falling to a first home league defeat of the season as Rennes made it three wins in their past four outings against the reigning champions.

PSG vs. Rennes final score   1H 2H Final PSG 0 0 0 REN 1 1 2

Goals:

REN — Karl Toko Ekambi (Benjamin Bourigeaud) — 45th minute.

REN — Arnaud Kalimuendo (Chimuanya Ugochukwu) — 48th minute.

MORE: Lionel Messi goals scored record vs Cristiano Ronaldo: Who will finish with most?

Mbappe probed behind the Rennes backline during the opening period but was generally forced to shoot from wide positions and found veteran goalkeeper Steve Mandanda equal to the task.

An injury-hit PSG defence were a more straightforward proposition and Toko Ekambi finished clinically to claim his first goal since joining Rennes in January.

Ex-PSG youngster Kalimuendo produced a muted celebration to match the stunned silence when he dispatched Lesley Ugochukwu's low cross after the hosts needlessly coughed up possession in midfield.

Rennes then bedded in for a defensive performance to see out victory, something they did in relative comfort.

Mbappe drew a spectacular stop from Mandanda inside the final 10 minutes and Messi got one more round of jeers when he smashed wide from distance in stoppage time. 

— beIN SPORTS USA (@beINSPORTSUSA) March 19, 2023

Lineups:

PSG (4-4-1-2, right to left): 99-Donnarumma (GK) — 31-Bitshiabu, 15-Danilo, 14-Bernat (18-Renato Sanches) — 29-Pembele, 6-Verratti, 8-Ruiz (44-Hugo Ekitike), 25-Mendes — 17-Vitinha — 10-Messi, 7-Mbappe

Rennes (3-4-3, right to left): 30-Mandanda (GK) — 23-Omari, 15-Wooh, 5-Theate — 90-Spence (27-Traore), 6-Ugochukwu (8-Santamaria), 14-Bourigeaud, 3-Truffert (25-Meling) — 33-Doue (19-Gouiri), 9-Kalimuendo (34-Salah) 17-Toko Ekambi 

Will PSG win Ligue 1?

Yes, probably, but they might have left the door slightly ajar heading into the final international break of the season. If Marseille win against in-form Reims in Sunday's late game, the gap will be trimmed to seven points. PSG have a run of games against Lyon, Nice and second-placed Lens when the action resumes in April. With Christophe Galtier widely expected to be axed as head coach at the end of the season, it is not hard to envisage one or two more rudderless performances like the one Rennes benefitted from. If that happens, then things could yet get interesting.

Why do PSG fans boo Lionel Messi?

Messi will now head back to Argentina for a pair of celebratory friendly games, with a football-crazy nation saluting their World Cup heroes. It will mark a sharp contrast to the esteem in which he is held in Paris.

Before kickoff, captain Mbappe was roared by the ultras and there were some boos for Messi. They only became more voluble as he had the temerity to not turn around a shambolic collective display with his every action. 

The boos are partly related to PSG's Champions League exit against Bayern Munich. Although he was not directly culpable, Messi was supposed to be the guy who stopped all this embarrassment. He also hasn't signed a contract extension, with his terms up at the end of the season and rumours of a return to Barcelona not going away. Considering this sample of the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner's Parisian experience, you have to wonder why on earth he'd bother signing any extension.

PSG fans boo and whistle Lionel Messi at the Parc des Princes. pic.twitter.com/qVxbMGPcYC

— Olt Sports (@oltsport_) March 19, 2023 How many times did Arnaud Kalimuendo play for PSG?

Kalimuendo came through PSG's youth ranks and scored nine times in 10 UEFA Youth League games. He made five first-team appearances between 2020 and 2022, starting twice and failing to score as a opportunities to break into a star-studded attack were limited.

His game-sealing goal was the latest on-the-nose example for the Parc des Princes faithful of a bright young talent succeeding elsewhere, from Kinglsey Coman performing decisively against PSG in the Champions League to Christopher Nkunku tearing up the Bundesliga and readying himself for a move to the Premier League.

An injury-hit PSG squad had a flimsy bench but it never needed to be this way. A top-heavy squad with the bulk of the budget ringfenced by a handful of stars feels so wasteful when prime Parisian talent that the club's academy honed is thriving elsewhere. It is the men behind these decisions and not Messi who deserve boos.

— beIN SPORTS USA (@beINSPORTSUSA) March 19, 2023

MORE: Ligue 1 top goal scorers 2022-2023: Updated golden boot table in France

PSG vs. Rennes as it happened, highlights from Ligue 1

Fulltime: It's all over. A richly deserved win for Rennes, who have done their Europa League hopes absolutely no harm. 

90th minute+4: Messi thumps a speculative effort off target from 30 yards and he's whistled again. Honestly, he must be wondering why he bothers with this absolute nonsense.

90th minute: There will be five minutes of stoppage time and there's no reason to think Rennes won't end up with a famous victory. PSG have been truly wretched.

84th minute: Magnificent save from Mandanda! Mbappe drops of the front and finds Verratti, who shapes a shot towards the right corner. At full stretch, the Rennes goalkeeper tips around the post. Brilliant goalkeeping.

83rd minute: Messi floats one towards Sanches, who meets it on the volley. Traore is down after getting that one, well, spanked right into his backside.

82nd minute: Mendes gets to the byline, looking for Ekitike. It's cleared behind for a corner.

79th minute: Traore straight into the action and in behind what passes for a PSG defence. He can't finish.

78th minute: Fresh legs for Rennes as Santamaria, Traore and Salah replace Ugochukwu, Spence and the goalscorer Kalimuendo. All of those three can be very happy with their afternoon's work.

74th minute: Messi is pulling the strings when there's enough torque for him to do so in this limp PSG assortment. The latest attack sees Mbappe once again off-target from a tight angle.

73rd minute: Messi, who is one shy of 800 career goals, tries his luck from 25 yards. The ball wobbles around a bit but Mandanda gets enough behind it.

68th minute: A chance for 3-0! Toko Ekambi shifts the ball onto his right foot and shoots just over the far post. Danilo, who has defended with all the robust commitment of a mannequin, allowed that to happen.

64th minute: Ekitike drives forward on the break. The youngster has livened up this PSG performance, although that's not exactly difficult. He lays it off to Messi, who finds Mbappe for a wild effort that goes high and wide.

58th minute: Messi lofts a pass out to Mbappe, who sizes up Spence but the on-loan Tottenham wing-back stands firm at the cost of a corner.

56th minute: Double change for PSG as Sanches and Ekitike replace Bernat and Fabian Ruiz.

54th minute: Mbappe tries a shot on the turn but Wooh gets enough of a foot in for the ball to spin harmlessly back towards Mandanda.

52nd minute: Christopher Wooh booked for handball. Christopher Booh.

50th minute: PSG briefly thing they have a penalty as Meling goes walloping into Mendes. No doubt that's a foul but replays confirm Mendes was offside as he darted in from the flank.

48th minute: GOOOOAAAALLLLL!!!! Arnaud Kalimuendo!!!!!!

The boos rain down again. A pass towards a fairly disinterested-looking Messi is snaffled in midfield and Rennes cut through a static PSG defence. Danilo is caught ball watching and Kalimuendo slots in Ugochukwu's low cross to score against his former club.

— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) March 19, 2023

46th minute: Back underway in Paris, where Christophe Galtier has sent on Warren Zaire Emery for Pembele.

Halftime: Messi gives the ball away and his jeered by some of the home fans. The catcalls get louder as the whistle sounds and Rennes, despite the early loss of Truffert to that nasty-looking ankle injury - have a halftime lead at the Parc des Princes.

45th minute: GOOOOAAALLLLLL!!!!! Toko Ekambi!!!!

No prizes for guessing that a raking ball over the top does the damage but it's Rennes who led! Toko Ekambi gets clear of Bernat's attentions and smashes past Donnarumma. In the absence of away fans, a stunned silence gives way to jeers from the home support. There'll be more of that if PSG don't level in these two minutes of injury time.

— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) March 19, 2023

41st minute: Following a sleepy period of play, Mbappe is in behind the Rennes backline once more. He thumps high towards goal and Mandanda parries upwards before turning back and grasping the loose ball in his goalmouth.

34th minute: Good outside-to-in run from Pembele, whose low ball into the six-yard box looking for Mbappe is snaffled by Mandanda.

33rd minute: Again the ball over the top proves fruitful for PSG. Messi spins to engineer some space but shoots too close to Mandanda, who gathers easily. It might have been offside in any case.

30th minute: Truffert has re-emerged and will take his place on the Rennes bench while grappling with a pair of crutches.

26th minute: Vitinha snaffles a loose ball and Rennes are in trouble. Here's Messi and that's a delicious angled pass to Mbappe. Mandanda is out quickly, though, and does enough to block an attempted dinked finish.

25th minute: PSG try the direct ploy again and Mbappe is onside this time. The angle is against his however and he thrashes across goal and wide with his left foot.

24th minute:  Messi bustles after a ball over the top and Mandanda claims. The Rennes goalkeeper briefly looked like he was about to tumble out of his area then but managed to stick the landing.

— JS (@juegosimple__) March 19, 2023

23rd minute: There he is! Mbappe darts clear of the Rennes defence and thumps into the net. But he was offside by a couple of yards and knew as much.

— beIN SPORTS USA (@beINSPORTSUSA) March 19, 2023

21st minute: Not much happening at the moment, with Mbappe on the margins. That is at least an improvement, so far as PSG are concerned, given they spent the first 10 minutes seemingly trying to concede a goal.

16th minute: Messi looks to get a lethargic PSG going. A sliding Omari deflects his shot form 20 yards wide. Danilo looks to convert from the resulting corner but the visitors hack clear.

11th minute: Toko Ekambi turns Bernat inside out. Again Bitshiabu gets back to deflect his shot behind for a corner. Messi looks to break as PSG deal with the danger.

9th minute: Good again from Rennes as Doue aims a low cross toward Kalimuendo. Teenage defender Bitshiabu makes a vital near-post challenge inside the six-yard box.

8th minute: A slip in the PSG defence and Toko Ekambi gets a chance to cut onto his right foot, only to drag his shot wide. That was  better chance than he made it look.

4th minute: Truffert sits down on the turf before hobbling off in anguish. His race is run. On comes Birger Meling

3rd minute: Messi tries to work an angle coming in from the right and finds Vitinha, who overcooks his pass for Fabian Ruiz and it's a goal kick. Truffert is going to try and run it off, but he looks in an unhelpful amount of pain.

1st minute: We're underway and Pembele stretches his legs down the right. Truffert blocks the cross and it goes out for a corner. The Rennes left-back has gone over horribly on his ankle in doing so, though, and we could see a very early change.

4 mins from kickoff: The teams are in the tunnel at the Parc des Princes. We're almost ready to go.

15 mins from kickoff: Her beloved Arsenal are wrapping up a 4-1 win over Crystal Palace. It could be quite the day.

Kim Kardashian is at the Parc des Princes this afternoon to watch PSG take on Rennes.

— Get French Football News (@GFFN) March 19, 2023

25 mins from kickoff: Kylian Mbappe has scored in each of PSG's four consecutive league wins, netting six in this period. Messi was also on target in the first three of those games. In Neymar's absence, they might be proving the old adage that two's company and three is a crowd.

45 mins from kickoff: This is the PSG XI, with Mbappe and Messi present and correct. It looks like both sides will field start with three central defenders.

???? Le onze de départ parisien dans ce #PSGSRFC.#AllezParis ???????? pic.twitter.com/dT4ugX3elX

— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_inside) March 19, 2023

55 mins from kickoff: The Rennes team news is in. Djed Spence starts at right-back after overcoming a minor knock.

???? Le XI pour affronter le PSG. #PSGSRFC #ToutDonner pic.twitter.com/zFJfN894H5

— Stade Rennais F.C. (@staderennais) March 19, 2023

1 hours 20 mins from kickoff: Lionel Messi will head off for a celebratory homecoming with his Argentina teammates after this match. But is the final chapter of his PSG career coming next? The 35-year-old is out of contract at the end of this season and yet to pen an extension. 

"It's too early to know his future," said Galtier this week, speaking with the calmness of a man who knows he's probably off in the summer whatever happens. "He, the board and the president are talking a lot. I've already said that his stay would be positive news for everyone. "I know there has been a lot of criticism after [going out of the Champions League to] Bayern Munich, but he has been decisive in many moments of the season."

1 hour 40 mins from kickoff: After a week when PSG had to watch another Champions League quarterfinal draw from a distance, Christophe Galtier's side can take step towards another Ligue 1 title when they taken on Rennes. Bruno Genesio's Europa League-chasing side begins a relatively tricky run of fixtures, with Lyon, Nice and second-placed Lens up after the international break. If PSG get through those unscathed then it will be time to start engraving the trophy.

2 hours mins from kickoff: Hello and welcome to The Sporting News' live coverage of Paris Saint-Germain versus Rennes from Ligue 1. PSG saw their lead narrowed to nine points at the apex of the French top flight, but could restore the double-digit lead with victory today.

— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English) March 19, 2023 PSG vs Rennes lineups, team news

Head coach Christophe Galtier has a long list of injury absences, including Achraf Hakimi, Sergio Ramos, Nordi Mukiele, Carlos Soler, and Marquinhos out of action until after the international break, and Neymar and Presnel Kimpembe sidelined for the season.

PSG starting XI (5-3-2): Donnarumma (GK) — Pembele, Bitshiabu, Danilo, Bernat, Mendes — Vitinha, Verratti, Ruiz — Messi, Mbappe

PSG subs (8): Rico (GK), Leteillier (GK), Charbi, Sanches, Zaire-Emery, Housni, Fernandez Veliz, Lamy

Rennes will be without key forward Jeremy Doku for this match, although Tottenham loanee Djed Spence is fit to start after a minor injury and is likely to start on the bench. Captain Hamari Traore is back among the substitutes, while Warmed Omari returns from suspension to bolster the defence.

Rennes starting XI (5-4-1): Mandanda (GK) — Spence, Omari, Wooh, Theate, Truffert — Doue, Ugochukwu, Bourigeaud, Toko Ekambi — Kalimuendo

Rennes subs (11): Alemdar (GK), Salin (GK), Traore, Rodon, Belocian, Meling, Santamaria, Majer, Tait, Gouiri, Salah

MORE: PSG next manager odds to take over for Christophe Galtier

How to watch PSG vs. Rennes   TV channel Streaming Australia beIN Sports 2 Kayo Sports,
beIN Sports Connect Canada beIN Sports fuboTV Canada,
beIN Sports Connect Hong Kong — beIN Sports Connect India Sports 18 — Malaysia —

beIN Sports Connect

New Zealand — beIN Sports Connect Singapore beIN Sports Xtra beIN Sports Connect UK BT Sport 2 BT Sport app/site USA beIN Sports fuboTV,
beIN Sports Connect

UK: This match will be broadcast live in the UK via BT Sports' TV and streaming services.

USA: This match is televised in the USA on beIN Sports, which streams on fuboTV. It's also available online on beIN Sports Connect in English and Spanish.

Canada: Every Ligue 1 match this season is televised on beIN Sports, which streams on fuboTV Canada. There is also a stream available on beIN Sports Connect.

Australia: Fans in Australia can stream Ligue 1 matches live and on demand with Kayo Sports and via beIN Sports Connect,

MORE: Watch every Premier League match live with fuboTV in Canada