Nantes inflict surprise defeat on Ligue 1 leaders Paris St Germain

Nantes doubled their lead thanks to a fine strike from Quentin Merlin in the 16th minute.

Dennis Appiah received a direct red card at the end of the first half after knocking Kylian Mbappe down while on goal – only to have the decision changed to yellow after a VAR review.

Referee Mikael Lesage then initially did not award a penalty for Georginio Wijnaldum’s handball in stoppage time, only to take another look and point for the spot, with Ludovic Blas converting.

Neymar reduced the deficit just minutes after the restart when he was played by Messi but then had his soft penalty saved after Mbappe was knocked down.

PSG remain 13 points ahead of Marseille, which receives Clermont on Sunday, after a first defeat in the league since the beginning of October while Nantes passes fifth.

Earlier on Saturday, Lens and Lyon drew 1-1 at Stade Bollaert-Delelis, where both goals came in the first half.

La Liga leaders Real Madrid extended their advantage to seven points with a 3-0 victory over Alaves at the Bernabeu.

After Alaves substitute Pere Pons missed an open goal as he rounded Thibaut Courtois, Los Blancos took the lead with a curling strike from 20 yards out from Marco Asensio in the 63rd minute.

Vinicius Junior added a second 11 minutes from time and Karim Benzema netted a late penalty as Carlo Ancelotti’s side edged Sevilla, who travel to Espanyol on Sunday.

Atletico Madrid won 3-0 at Osasuna, where an early goal from Joao Felix put them on the right track.

Luis Suarez doubled the time and Angel Correa added a late third.

Villarreal are fifth after Arnaut Danjuma scored a hat-trick in a 4-1 win over struggling Granada as it ended 1-1 between relegated Cadiz and Getafe.

In the Bundesliga, Hoffenheim moved closer to the top three after coming from behind to win 2-1 at Wolfsburg.

Jacob Bruun Larsen and Andrej Kramaric scored twice in the space of five minutes late in the second half after Jonas Wind put Wolfsburg ahead.

Cologne maintained their top six with a 1-0 win at home to Eintracht Frankfurt thanks to Anthony Modeste’s goal after 84 minutes.

Arminia Bielefeld edged Union Berlin 1-0 to bolster their survival hopes, while a last-minute penalty from Eduard Lowen earned Bochum a 1-1 draw against strugglers Stuttgart and Freiburg won 2 -1 in Augsburg to take fifth place.

Serie A leaders AC Milan were held 2-2 by bottom side Salernitana.

Junior Messias had given the Rossoneri an early lead, only for a fine header from Federico Bonazzoli to bring the hosts level.

Milan Duric then headed in for Salernitana with 18 minutes to go, but Ante Rebic’s long-range effort quickly put an end to any thoughts of a stunning upset.

AC Milan are now just two points clear of rivals Inter, who have games in progress and host Sassuolo on Sunday.

Roma came from two goals down to draw 2-2 against Verona with a late strike from Edoardo Bove while Fabio Quagliarella netted a brace as Sampdoria beat Empoli 2-0.