Magical Mbappe makes his mark to stun Bayern

IT was almost like Bayern Munich had not done their homework. Kylian Mbappe, it might be worth marking him. The Paris Saint-Germain striker tore Barcelona apart in the last round, a stunning hat-trick that put Europe on alert, and here again he scored twice. How fortunate Mauricio Pochettino is to have the Frenchman spearheading his attack. And then there is Neymar, a player desperate to remind people just how much he wants to win. Without question, he made his point here. ‘People don’t understand how obsessed I am with winning,’ reads the tattoo on his right thigh. Even two Bayern headers couldn’t take the gloss off a sublime display in what was a sublime game. Neymar’s impact took just 148 seconds, driving through Bayern’s defence before having the finesse to weight a ball perfectly for Mbappe to make it 1-0. Manuel Neuer gambled on diving low to his right and lost. Bayern were stunned. When Neymar clipped a ball over the top of a Bayern defence all at sea, following the breakdown of a set-piece midway through the half, it was as if time froze momentarily. There was Marquinhos, controlling with aplomb, before firing past a this time helpless Neuer. Bayern had to respond and Hansi Flick did so, bringing on the pace and power of Alphonso Davies.

The impact was instant and freed up Benjamin Pavard on the other flank to give Bayern a lifeline, his cross finding the head of Choupo-Moting. Thomas Muller nodded in Bayern’s second. But PSG hit back thanks to Mbappe (left) again as he made it 3-2. The Frenchman said: ‘I love to play against the best players in world. Manuel Neuer is one of the best keepers in history. I felt no pressure.’