Kylian Mbappé’s incredible Champions League knockout stage record continues
Kylian Mbappé (25) made a statement against Real Sociedad. He hasn’t played a full 90 minutes in his last three Ligue 1 games and he was substituted at half-time against formative club AS Monaco on Friday. He was no longer untouchable, but he reasserted his importance at Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday, netting a brace to allow Les Parisiens to book their place in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League.
The France captain scored the opener in the first leg and then proceeded to open the scoring at the Reale Arena. He then doubled his account in the second half to give PSG an unassailable 4-0 aggregate lead. Despite a late Real Sociedad consolation, Les Parisiens comfortably progressed.
His goals have seen him overtake Arjen Robben and Filippo Inzaghi in terms of goals in the knockout stages of the Champions League. He has now joined Raul and Andriy Shevchenko on 18 goals in the knockout phases, making him the joint-sixth highest goalscorer at this stage of the competition of all time.
Incredibly, Mbappé has now scored 11 out of PSG’s last 15 goals in the knockout stages of the Champions League. “Irreplaceable” read the front page of Wednesday’s L’Équipe. He is certainly that, even if they must soon find a way to replace his incredible output. This season, no one in Europe’s top five leagues has scored more than Mbappé (34 goals), with his brace taking him clear of Bayern Munich’s Harry Kane (33 goals). He will be a big miss for PSG when he inevitably departs upon the expiry of his contract at the end of the season.
GFFN | Luke Entwistle
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