Barcelona-PSG: The last chance of the Champions League for Kylian Mbappe’s Paris

Before walking the aisles of the Geneva Watch Fair on Thursday, April 11, Kylian Mbappé should have taken inspiration from the watch brand he’s ambassador to pick a better time to visit Switzerland. A day after Paris Saint-Germain’s (PSG) Champions League quarter-final first-leg loss against Barcelona (2-3), the striker was spotted out there all smiles, clearly far from worried. Parc des Princes lawn.

Some PSG supporters have not hesitated to highlight the objections of the Bondi (Saint-Saint-Denis) native, revealed “Eat well, sleep well”By the striker for his team-mates after the defeat against Bayern Munich in February 2023. The formula seemed to target Neymar, who was regularly criticized for his overly repetitive appearances at extra-sporting events. A year later, he’s in the eye of the storm.

Having missed the first leg, the 25-year-old striker knows he is looking forward to the second leg against Barca at the Lluis-Companys Olympic Stadium on Tuesday, April 16. It is here, 600 kilometers from the Santiago Bernabéu stadium where he could have continued his career at Real Madrid, that Mbappe will likely play his final European Cup match against Paris Saint-Germain.

Two paths open for PSG in Barcelona. Of the last four – which he did not reach after 2021. And the new era, post-Mbappe, who will leave the ship at the end of the season. This would begin as soon as the ultimate trophy – the Champions League – was no longer within reach. once again, “Big Dream”PSG is fighting After the arrival of the Qatari owners in 2011, it will take a new form.

“If the team is better, the individuals will handle it”

In recent years, Paris has fantasized about winning the prestigious Grand Prix, with Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Neymar, Lionel Messi and then Mbappe leading the way. Tuesday is the last chance for the 2023-2024 vintage. “PSG is still the favorite”“Barcelona” coach Xavi said after the victory at “Parc de Prince” last week. But nothing has been done yet.

The outcome of this quarter-final return will surely depend on Mbappe’s performance and the version of himself he presents to the Catalan community. That first leg and the last weeks, out of the picture Together with PSG and the French national team, they will have little chance to qualify for Paris. The one who beat Barca with a hat-trick at the Camp Nou in February 2021, much more.

A striker that Parisian supporters demand in the squad, a space eater and a defender, however, does not appear in the order. Caught out by the Blaugrana defense on 10 April and criticized for his poor performance due to perceived weakness, the No. 7 was able to rely on the support of his captain, Marquinhos: “If he was less accurate tonight, it might be because the ball didn’t come at the right time, at the right time. (…) If the team is better, then the individuals will do better. »

With the return of the suspended Ashraf Hakeem on the outside leg, the Parisian team is bound to do better. It will also be boosted by a weekend spent preparing for the deadline, rather than playing in Ligue 1 – with the professional football league opting to postpone matches for clubs still involved in European cups to boost their chances of excelling there. Meanwhile, Barca tried to rotate their squad during Saturday’s 1-0 win at Cadiz.

Continue the adventure for several weeks

Announced as favorites for this doubleheader against the Catalan club at the time of the draw, the Parisians will have to do better in the opening fifteen minutes of the half – as they did last week – to achieve their own “comeback”, seven. Years after what he suffered at the Camp Nou on March 8, 2017. “We are confident that we will change the situation”On Monday, Luis Enrique, who was then on the Barca bench, and today is coaching PSG, struck.

And under his leadership, Kylian Mbappé, who is experiencing his most conflicted relationship with the coach since arriving in Paris in 2017. Already PSG’s all-time top goalscorer, Bondinois has never hidden his desire to offer the club their first crown in Paris. Champions League. ” [le] Feels very motivated as a whole team. It’s time to show that we are ready and change the result of the first match.”Hakim, on the other hand, argued.

But his PSG have had contrasting adventures at the prestigious European Cups, with big disappointments in the round of 16 against Manchester United (2019) and Real Madrid (2022), a return to the semi-finals that the injured striker missed against Manchester City (2021). , or his disappointing performance against Bayern Munich in the final (2020).

On Tuesday, the club from the capital will be eliminated by Barcelona. He does it every year and is now accustomed to deferring his wildest hopes until next season. But to keep the story with Mbappe going a little longer before we move on, it’s either or never.