When Lionel Messsi ends up with his face in the fresh lawn after one last forced dribble too many, the Parc des Princes has gotten used to the idea of a poorly paid 0-0. But there must be a few seconds left, so why not. Yes, why not rely on Kylian Mbappé one last time? A last acceleration, a last turn of the kidneys for the Madrid defenders, a last curled strike. But this time, Thibaut Courtois’ gloves will not save an insignificant Real Madrid in this Champions League Round of 16 first leg.
📽 Kylian Mbappé’s goal which delivers PSG in the last seconds against Real! #PSGReal #RMCChampions https://t.co/3TwT24poqi
The Park has found its king. He wears number 7 and too bad if he is promised another throne in June on the side of Castile. Kylian Mbappé is still Parisian until proven otherwise, and the victory too, so deserved (1-0) this Tuesday, February 15. Mauricio Pochettino can confirm this to his body and his defending nose. “ I felt two things about Kylian’s goal, smiled the coach of Paris-Saint-Germain. First joy, and then Leandro Paredes came up to me and bumped into me to celebrate. I thought he broke my nose. I had to ask the doctor to look but it’s ok. »
Hand in hand, his players then went to greet the Auteuil and Boulogne corners deprived of these atmospheres of the final stages since 2019 (Covid-19 obliges) and this unforeseen mishap against Manchester United (1-3). Before this match, Kylian Mbappé implored the media “not to sell fear” after the 2-0 first leg victory in England. Three years later, fear still creeps over his skin. The 23-year-old striker has no doubts, even against this club whose posters have long covered his childhood bedroom in Bondy.
Invited to see the damage, Carlo Ancelotti was fatalistic at a press conference. “We tried to control him somehow, but he is a player capable of inventing an action at any time and he did it at the last minute”sighed the Real coach.
Benzema isolated, Messi not inspired
This Tuesday evening, his “White House” looked like a sheet metal shack to be defended as best they could. Karim Benzema found the time very long in attack and would have liked to be able to talk to a ball like Tom Hanks in Alone in the world to deceive the loneliness of the centre-forward. Blame it on a restrictive game plan (“leave the ball to the Parisians”, summarized Carlo Ancelotti), but also to an inspired, involved, determined PSG. Unpublished words to evoke a team which has been said a lot of badly this season, and not always wrongly.
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