PSG quickly got into their groove, taking the lead inside two minutes as Nuno Mendes burst past Fabien Centonze and saw his cross flicked on cleverly by Gonçalo Ramos into the path of Achraf Hakimi, who tucked in at the back post beyond Nantes’ goalkeeping debutant Patrik Carlgren.
It was not the start that the Swedish stopper would have wanted, but he soon spread himself to deny Vitinha after Lee Kang-in had taken a fresh-air shot from Bradley Barcola’s ball across.
Lee subsequently hit the woodwork before Carlgren thwarted Hakimi and Barcola, while at the other end, Matthis Abline was frustrated not to have connected cleanly with Nicolas Cozza’s cross.
However, Abline stunningly made amends on 38 minutes against the run of play, carrying the ball upfield before superbly selling Willian Pacho a dummy and driving past Gianluigi Donnarumma.
That goal certainly revived the contest, with Lee’s lack of composure seeing him waste an opportunity to put PSG back in front and Carlgren repelling Mendes’ strike before Joao Neves’ follow-up dribbled wide.
The equaliser would have been a shock for PSG, who had enjoyed more than 80% possession before the break, but the capital club couldn’t replicate their fast first-half start in the second period, with home manager Luis Enrique introducing teenager Warren Zaire-Emery for Neves just after the hour mark.
However, Nantes were keeping their opponents at bay relatively comfortably - marshalled by the excellent Nicolas Pallois - leading Enrique to throw on Ousmane Dembélé and Désiré Doué for Lee and Barcola.
Nantes, coached by former PSG boss Antoine Kombouaré, held on though for what could prove to be a vital point in their fight for survival, ending a run of five head-to-head defeats in the process.
PSG meanwhile must lick their wounds ahead of their trip next Friday to Auxerre, but Enrique’s men are still unbeaten in the league this season and on course to win their fourth successive title.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Patrik Carlgren (Nantes)