Ten-man Paris St Germain got the defence of their Ligue 1 title off to a good start when Lucas’s second-half strike earned them a 1-0 win at Lille on Friday.
The champions, who began the three previous seasons with a draw, had midfielder Adrien Rabiot sent off in the 28th minute for two bookings but Brazil midfielder Lucas secured all three points with a goal just before the hour.
PSG were without injured striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic but they still looked a cut above their opponents in the season curtain-raiser at the Pierre Mauroy stadium in northern France.
Laurent Blanc’s PSG side were at times shaken by Lille but their defence held firm and they only needed one clear chance to take advantage despite going down to 10 men. Youngster Rabiot was booked twice in seven minutes as PSG, with their new recruit from Manchester United, Angel Di Maria, watching from the stands, dominated the early exchanges.