Cyrille de la Morinerie // Photo credit: Matthieu Mirville / DPPI via AFP
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7:30 p.m., April 16, 2024
PSG wants to overthrow the Barcelona mountain this evening and is counting a lot on its star striker. The Parisian club is hoping for an awakening of its X factor to reverse the situation. Kylian Mbappé, 39 goals this season in all competitions with PSG but author of a very mediocre performance in the first leg, will try to shine.
“Mbappé? I feel he is very motivated!” assures his PSG teammate Hachraf Hakimi
His friend, Moroccan defender Hachraf Hakimi, back from suspension after missing the first leg, affirms that the 25-year-old star will be there as he explained Tuesday afternoon at a press conference in Barcelona: ” I feel it very well, he is very motivated like the whole team. I think this is the time to show that we are ready and that we can change the result of the first leg,” he assures. in front of journalists.
For Alain Giresse, Kylian Mbappé can make the difference in this exceptional Champions League match
But the PSG star is experiencing a big downturn. The Parisian number 7 has only scored one goal in his last 6 matches, one of his longest droughts since the start of his career. That being said, Kylian Mbappé remains capable of beating a team on his own, affirms Europe 1 football consultant Alain Giresse: “The most, in all the circumstances of big matches, is Kylian Mbappé! He must participates in the development of the game and when the time comes, he will be able to make the difference as only he knows how to do.”
Kylian Mbappé will perhaps play his last match with Paris in the Champions League this evening. The striker, who announced his departure at the end of the season from the Parisian club, knows that elimination would spell the end of his European adventure with PSG. But the native of Bondy has not said his last word. To succeed in his mission, the Parisian number 7 will be helped by his teammate, former Barcelona player Ousmane Dembélé, scorer in the first leg. After suffering the affront of the Remontada in 2017, PSG is counting heavily on Kylian Mbappé to surprise its eternal Catalan rival.
FC Barcelona in good shape but…
Barça remains on 6 consecutive victories including a success last weekend in Cádiz. The team led by Robert Lewandowski, 2nd in Liga, is banking heavily on the Champions League. For this return match, two key Barcelona players will be missing: captain Sergi Roberto and Andreas Christensen, scorer in the first leg, will be suspended. The match will not take place at the Camp Nou, the stadium being renovated, but at the smaller Montjuïc Olympic Stadium, again an advantage for PSG
1,500 Parisian fans left Paris last night to go to Barcelona where they hope to see PSG qualify for the semi-final. The last time Paris reached the final four was in 2021.