Thanks to superstar Kylian Mbappé, Paris St. Germain is heading for the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
The Ligue 1 leaders won the first leg of the round of 16 against Real Sociedad San Sebastian 2-0 (0-0). Mbappe initiated the success in the 58th minute. Bradley Barcola (70th) increased. This gave PSG a very good starting position for the second leg on March 5th.
There has been excitement about the future of Mbappé (25) for weeks. Apparently a mega move to Real Madrid is imminent in the summer. But first the exceptional striker wants to realize his dream of winning the handle pot with Paris. Since 2017, PSG has failed five times in seven round of 16 appearances; the French only reached the final in 2020, but lost to FC Bayern (0-1).
PSG coach Luis Enrique rotated to eight positions after the recent 3-1 win against Lille. Among other things, Mbappé returned to PSG’s starting eleven. The striker also had the first chance. However, keeper Alex Remiro reacted brilliantly.
Otherwise, PSG had a hard time. The seventh-placed team in La Liga, which only reached the round of 16 in the premier class for the second time, was compact. San Sebastian had only conceded two goals in the group phase. The guests even had the best chance before the break when Mikel Merino (45th + 1) hit the crossbar.
After the change, PSG became more active. But only a corner made it 1-0. For Mbappé it was already the 31st goal in the 30th competitive game of the season.