Kylian Mbappé scored twice on his Champions League debut. (Photo AP / Thibault Camus)
The obsession with the Cup is not the exclusive heritage of Argentine teams and also in Europe it is experienced in a similar way, although the opposite is thought. In that state of waiting, which can sometimes turn into despair, they find themselves Manchester City Y paris st germain, those new flagship clubs from the perfidious injection of dollars born in the Middle East. And the initial step of both in a new edition of the Champions League has been positive, beyond the fact that they have given different versions: the cast that commands Pep Guardiola gave a soccer lesson and dunked 4-0 at Seville in the Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán, while those supported by Leone Messi They won 2-1 against a weak onel Juventus in the Parc des Princes in the French capital.
The future is known to have come a long time ago since it was condemned by a Los Redondos song. And this was demonstrated on the first day of the Champions League, with the remarkable performances of the Norwegian Erling Haaland (22) and the French Kylian Mbappé (23): both eliminated with a brace. Messi, on the other hand, played a decent match against Juve (he was replaced by Soler in the 38th minute of the second half) and Cristiano Ronaldo, the king of the competition, will not play it because Manchester United will play in the Europa League.
Haaland is an unassuming footballer, but a fearsome striker. It also has unmatched power. Unlike Mbappé, he is a striker who takes little part in the passing circuit: in Seville, for example, he only delivered 8 passes; even though he has finished the door 7 times. He scored the first for City, pushed a center into the goal area from Kevin De Bruyneand then the third, after capturing a goalkeeper rebound.
The Champions League looks like a tailor-made tournament for the Norwegian striker. Wear nothing less than 25 goals in 20 games, a figure that no one had achieved. How long did it take other great players to reach that milestone? Inzaghi and Van Nistelrooy did it in 29 games, Benzema in 41, Messi and Robert Lewandowski in 42 and Cristiano Ronaldo in 63.
“I think Erling’s numbers throughout his career, not just here, are quite similar. It has an incredible sense of knowing where the goal is, “Guardiola said after the victory on Spanish soil. He added:” The connections between the players emerge through time and training. But the good players are between them and us. coaches we paint pictures “.
City’s other goals were scored by Phil Foden and Rubén Días. Julián Álvarez, meanwhile, played the last 20 minutes and didn’t score. In the local team, on the other hand, Marcos Acuña and Alejandro Gómez were the owners, while Gonzalo Montiel was on the bench.
The preview of the match between PSG and Juventus had many toppings: the presence at Juve of Leandro Paredes, teammate of Messi and company until a few weeks ago; the absence due to injury of Ángel Di María, who would also play against the Parisians for the first time after his departure; and the escape of Mbappé’s multimillion-dollar contract, which surpassed the previous one. With all this, the first three points of both teams remained in the hands of the French team.
And the protagonist of the duel was, once again, Mbappé, who had already scored a brace in 22 minutes. With that couple of screams, at 23 years and 260 days, he became the youngest player to reach 35 Champions League goals. Who has dethroned? To teammate Messi, who had scored them at 23 years and 308 days.
Mbappé’s first goal was a great goal. Summarized in two actions: Neymar’s spoon for the Frenchman, who didn’t wait for him to come down, and – the second – the right cross he took to break through the door.
It must be said: the second was also a great goal. In speed Marco Verratti touches for Mbappé, who unloads on Hakimi and runs to look for the pass in the area, where he performs, again, with a right.
The feeling was a landslide because, in addition to Mbappé, Neymar was also at an excellent level. But McKennie served early in the second half and left the score open until the end.
“We are very happy to have won this first game. There are still things to improve. We couldn’t finish the game earlier, but it’s normal because this is the Champions League, if it had been easy we would have won it already, “Mbappé said.” Kylian played a great game, with two magnificent goals. they are finding the attackers; they make the game more attractive, ”emphasized Christopher Galtier.
There was little or no Messi this time (he scored 70 of the 74 passes he made). But the one who got into a lot of action was Leandro Paredes, who had a special duel against his former teammates. After 13 minutes, the Scaloneta midfielder waives a free kick for PSG: he mercilessly lowers Mbappé, with a subtle but firm touch to the ankles. Nine minutes later, the Brazilian Bremer was a little stronger than the French and when Sergio Ramos took the meter with 83 centimeters to defend his teammate, he was scolded by the former Boca: to the thrusts, as if they had not shared a locker room until until a few weeks ago. In that action, the Spaniard took the yellow.
City and PSG, those two teams that have never won the Champions League and have it between their eyebrows, have started off on the right foot. And they both have the right to delusion. Because for the English he plays a striker for whom the goal is as easy as breathing and because the French have the most decisive forward in the world. Mbappé and Haaland: the new rulers of the Champions League.
Source: Clarin
