Vitinha powers PSG to victory over Nantes, Angers spoil Paris FC’s return

Paris Saint-Germain got their defence of the Ligue I title off to a winning start on Sunday as Vitinha’s deflected strike proved enough to earn the European champions a IO victory away to Nantes.

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The Portuguese midfielder’s effort midway through the second half beat goalkeeper Anthony Lopes with the aid of a wicked deflection off Nantes defender Chidozie Awaziem to break the deadlock.

PSG were made to work hard for their victory as coach Luis Enrique made seven changes to his starting lineup following the UEFA Super Cup win on penalties against Tottenham Hotspur in midweek.

That was the first game of the new campaign for last season's Champions League winners, who only began preseason training on August 6 having gone all the way to the Club World Cup final in the United States in mid-July.

They did not play any friendly matches prior to that and are therefore likely to require several weeks before getting close to the level at which they performed last season.

However, they still had enough against a hardworking but punchless Nantes side, playing a first competitive match under new Portuguese coach Luis Castro.

“I am very happy because the first objective in these matches is the victory and I think we deserved the three points,” Luis Enrique said.