‘Complete’ Mbappe praised after PSG beat Bayern Munich
paris — Kylian Mbappe was singled out for praise despite being the only member of Paris SaintGermain’s superstar attack who didn’t score in Wednesday’s big Champions League win over German giants Bayern Munich.
Dani Alves, Edinson Cavani and Neymar netted as PSG eased to a 3-0 victory at Parc des Princes to make it two wins from two games in Group B and take a huge step towards progressing to the last 16.
But Mbappe, with his frightening pace and skill, set up Cavani’s magnificent strike that made it 2-0 and left David Alaba for dead as he created Neymar’s goal in the second half. “Kylian is progressing well. He has great talent and great desire to help the team grow,” said coach Unai Emery of the 18-year-old, who got the biggest roar of the night from the 45,000 home fans in the French capital when he made way for Angel di Maria late on.
“The idea when we signed him was that he would help the team grow and the team would help him grow too. His was a complete performance.”
The French teenager was making just his second appearance at Parc des Princes since arriving from Monaco on an initial loan deal that will become permanent next year, for a fee rising to 180 million euros with bonuses. Only Neymar, at 222 million euros, will have cost more in the history of football and along with Cavani, PSG look to have a potentially Champions League-winning strike force.
But they will need to remain in this form and avoid the kind of tensions that marred the recent win over Lyon, when Cavani and Neymar argued over who should take a penalty.
“The expectations on us were big, which is normal after the transfer window,” Mbappe told Canal Plus. “It’s just the beginning. We wanted to put in a big performance against a great team and we did it.” —