Though clear underdogs, Nice were the form team on the back of three successive league victories, but they failed to really threaten their hosts in a surprisingly drab opening 45’, with PSG accounting for the only two shots on target.
Firstly, Bradley Barcola saw a searing drive from outside the penalty area saved impressively by Yehvann Diouf just ahead of the quarter-hour mark, before Achraf Hakimi failed to deliver enough power when receiving a lofted ball inside the box, giving the Senegalese stopper a much easier save.
A goalless first half was therefore much more readily welcomed by Nice, even if it did represent their first failure to breach the opposition in six away league matches.
However, with 10 of Nice’s previous 12 games seeing both teams score, there was something of a trend to fuel the hopes of fans, commentators, and writers alike that this one could spark into life.
That wasn’t the case in the opening skirmishes of the second half, though, as PSG probed and enjoyed a fair amount of territorial dominance to no satisfactory effect.
In fact, it took until the match was three-quarters of the way through before the Parc des Princes had its next collective gasp, with Vitinha latching onto a layoff and firing a powerful effort towards the top-right corner, only for Diouf to tip the ball wide at full stretch.
Double substitutions would follow from both benches, and with superior depth at Luis Enrique’s disposal, PSG went up a gear.
Ramos looked particularly dangerous in the final 10 minutes, with a flicked header on goal and a shot cannoning off the post, while Nice’s efforts to try and land a classic sucker punch continued to manifest only sporadically, with a tame shot from Jérémie Boga amongst the more ‘notable’ occasions Nice threatened.
In the true manner of champions, PSG never gave up, and with literally the final action of the night, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s flick on from a corner found Ramos lurking inside the box to head home and break Nice’s hearts.
In turn, PSG are a provisional four points clear at the top of Ligue 1, while Nice could now end the week as much as five points adrift of the European places.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Yehvann Diouf (OGC Nice)