Kylian Mbappe marked his return from injury with a goal, leading Paris Sainte-Germaine to a 2-0 win against Real Sociedad at Parc de Princes in the Champions League last-16 tie.
This result allows PSG to control their fate. The La Liga side will have to score two unreplied goals at San Sebastian in the return leg to qualify for the quarter-finals.
The French champions have an underwhelming Champions League record. They were enduring a frustrating night until Mbappe opened the score chart.
Mbappe, who missed his side’s previous match with an ankle problem, scored at the back post after a corner.
Bradley Barcola made it two for the hosts in the second half with a lovely finish past Alex Remiro.
Real Sociedad keeper had earlier denied Mbappe a second when he tipped his attempt onto the crossbar but couldn’t stop Barcola’s effort.
PSG was far from their best in the first half, and they were almost punished. Real Sociedad’s Mikel Merino had a chance to score, but his effort hit the bar just before halftime.
Real Sociedad is to turn the result around in the second leg in Spain on March 5. The La Liga side is expected to have a much more attacking threat than in Paris.
Mbappe, who will be leaving the Club this summer, has not allowed speculation to distract him as he kept scoring important goals for the Ligue 1 champions.
The Qatar-owned P.S.G. have not been lucky in the knock out stage spent vast sums on transfer fees and wages recently. After years of spending, they had always been eliminated from the last 16 of the Champions League five times in the past seven seasons.
Having won nine Ligue 1 titles since Qatar Sports Investments took over in 2011, European success is eluding the Club. From that time till this moment, PSG have appointed seven managers – four of those in the past four years.
Luis Enrique, who steered Barcelona to Champions League glory in 2014/15, returns to Spain for the second leg in three weeks as his team are in a solid position to advance.
Written by Oladipupo Mojeed
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