PARIS: Runaway leaders Paris St Germain left it late as Kylian Mbappe scored three minutes into stoppage time to beat Stade Rennais 1-0 in Ligue 1 on Friday.
PSG, who host Real Madrid in the Champions League on Tuesday, are now 16 points ahead of second-placed Olympique de Marseille, who play at struggling Metz on Sunday.
Rennes were three minutes away from becoming only the second team to take points off PSG at the Parc des Princes this season but got caught as they pushed forward and were punished by a quick counterattack.
Lionel Messi set up Mbappe, who opened up his body to casually convert, having gone closest earlier to securing victory for his side.
A deflected Mbappe shot hit the post just before halftime and he found the net midway through the second half but that effort was ruled offside by VAR.
Rennes remained in fifth place in the Ligue 1 standings.