Injured Mbappe ruled out of CL first leg clash against Bayern
However, PSG will hope that Mbappe, who has scored 25 goals in 26 appearances for his club this season, will be fit for the second leg against Bayern in Germany on March 8
Kylian Mbappe faces three weeks out with a thigh injury and will miss the first leg of Paris Saint-germain’s (PSG) Champions League last-16 tie against Bayern Munich on Feb.14, his club announced on Thursday.
The France star was hurt during the first half of Wednesday’s 3-1 win at Montpellier in Ligue 1 having earlier had two penalties saved.
PSG coach Christophe Galtier had initially suggested Mbappe had suffered a knock to the back of the knee rather than a muscle injury, but tests have since confirmed the true extent of the problem.
“Ater undergoing tests, Kylian Mbappe suffered an injury to the let thigh at the level of the femoral biceps,” said a club statement.
If he misses three weeks as expected, Mbappe can also expect to sit out next midweek’s French Cup last-16 tie against Marseille and faces a race against time to return for a potentially pivotal Ligue 1 game away to the same opponents at the end of this month.
However, PSG will hope that Mbappe, who has scored 25 goals in 26 appearances for his club this season, will be fit for the second leg against Bayern in Germany on March 8.
The news is a biter blow for the French giants, who are desperate to avoid a repeat of what happened last season when they were knocked out of the Champions League in the last 16 by Real Madrid. Earlier, PSG extended their lead at the top of Ligue 1 with a 3-1 win at Montpellier on Wednesday.
The France superstar had an eighth-minute spot-kick saved by Montpellier’s Benjamin
Ag ence France-presse
Lecomte and then remarkably saw his second atempt turned onto the post by the goalkeeper ater the referee ordered a retake.
Mbappe then limped off with what looked like a hamstring injury midway through the first half, raising the alarm for PSG with the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie against Bayern Munich now less than two weeks away.
Speaking ater the game, coach Christophe Galtier suggested the injury was down to a knock rather than a muscle problem.
Ater winning just one of their last four league games, Wednesday’s awkward trip for PSG saw them also lose Sergio Ramos to injury and have two goals disallowed before Fabian Ruiz put them ahead 10 minutes into the second half.
Ruiz then set up Lionel Messi to make it 2-0 with a det finish in the 72nd minute, the Argentine scoring his 14th club goal of the season.
Sixteen-year-old midfielder Warren Zaireemery made sure of the win in stoppage time ater Arnaud Nordin -- a friend of Mbappe’s from their time together at France’s national training academy -- had pulled one back.
PSG, who were without the rested Neymar, extended their lead at the top of the table from three to five points ater Lens lost 1-0 at home to Nice.
“It was a good performance in general,”
Galtier said. “There was an incredible scenario in the first half with the retaken penalty, we hit the post, had goals disallowed and two injuries because Sergio Ramos was involved in a collision and on falling he hurt his adductor, but apparently it is nothing serious.”
The win for PSG came ater a frustrating end to the January transfer window on Tuesday as they failed to process the paperwork to complete the loan signing of Hakim Ziyech from Chelsea ater the Moroccan winger had passed a medical.
Gaetan Laborde scored the only goal of the game for Nice as Lens dropped points at home for the first time this season ater winning all 10 previous matches there.
Marseille climbed above Lens into second place thanks to a 2-0 victory at Nantes earlier, secured by an own goal from Joao Victor and then a late strike by Azzedine Ounahi, the Moroccan World Cup star making his debut ater signing in the January window.
Monaco in fourth beat Auxerre 3-2, while fith-placed Rennes eased to a 3-0 win against struggling Strasbourg.
On-loan Arsenal striker Folarin Balogun followed up his last-gasp equaliser against PSG at the weekend by neting a hat-trick as Reims came from two goals down to beat Lorient 4-2 and extend their unbeaten run to 15 games.
Botom side Angers suffered a new French top-flight record 13th consecutive defeat as they conceded in stoppage time to lose 2-1 at home to Ajaccio. That result leaves them 11 points from safety.
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