Paris Saint-Germain boss Luis Enrique and skipper Marquinhos were thrilled after grinding out a tense 2-1 Le Classique win over fierce rivals Marseille at Stade Velodrome. The hard-fought victory lifted the reigning champions up to sixth in Ligue 1, while leaving their ten-man hosts stuck inside the drop zone following an ill-tempered battle.
Sunday night's showdown at Velodrome was a fiercely contested affair, with Ferran Torres heading PSG in front before Angel Gomes quickly restored parity for the hosts. Marquinhos then stepped up as the hero, pouncing on a loose ball from a corner to seal victory for the visitors just two minutes later. Les Parisiens' advantage became insurmountable when Marseille captain Timothy Weah was shown a red card in the final 15 minutes.
PSG boss Enrique acknowledged that Le Classique is always a physically and mentally draining encounter, dismissing suggestions that the fixture would be straightforward. The tactician highlighted his side's determination to respond after the break, having delivered a far sharper and more dominant second-half display.
Explaining his delight at his team's improved showing after half-time, Enrique told PSG TV: "Le Classique is tiring, but I'm very happy! Some people thought that this would be easy, but I didn't. Today, we again saw how tough it is to play in Le Classique, especially at the Velodrome, but I think that we played really well.
"The second half was much better than the first. We tried to improve on our first-half display and to create a lot of chances. We managed to do so, and we're really happy to get these three points, which we know are important to our fans."
This hard-earned victory cuts PSG's deficit behind league leaders Monaco to five points before the domestic calendar halts for the international break. Enrique's men return to action on October 10 when they host promoted Le Mans at Parc des Princes as they look to climb further up the table. Meanwhile, a reeling Marseille side stuck in the relegation zone must use the three-week pause to regroup ahead of a crucial trip to Troyes the following day.