Frenchman Kilian Mbappe, with a goal in extra time, broke the boredom he lived in Parc des Princes throughout the French League match against Rennes to achieve a new victory, the fourth in a row (1-0), before hosting Real Madrid. In the first leg of the round of 16 of the European Champions League.
Pochettino’s side didn’t need more, which gave the impression that they were thinking more on Tuesday, in the continental event, than a seemingly irrelevant commitment in a championship than on the track. 16 points ahead of Marseille, who is second in the standings.
Paris Saint-Germain did not press the accelerator in any way, as they faced a duel with Bruno Genesio’s team, who arrived in Paris with five defeats in their last eight matches.
And that Mauricio Pochettino has spared nothing to visit Rennes, the irregular team looking for a place in Europe. The Argentine coach faced the clash at the Parc des Princes with all the available arsenal. No rest for Leo Messi or Kylian Mbappe despite thirteen points of rent in regards to his pursuit in the Ligue 1 league that he will not escape.
He was only cautious with Angel Di Maria and Dutchman Georginio Wijnaldum due to physical discomfort throughout the week who played only the last half hour. As for Sergio Ramos and Neymar, they stayed in the stands. They are not ready yet.
Pochettino, who chose Costa Rica’s Keylor Navas as his primary target instead of Italian Gianluigi Donnarumma, faces Rennes with the following eleven: Keylor Navas; Achraf Hakimi, Marquinhos, Presnet Kimpembe, Juan Bernat; Julian Draxler, Leandro Paredes, Marco Verratti; Xavi Simmons, Leo Messi and Kylian Mbappe.
Boredom conquered most of the first half. With Paris Saint-Germain as dominant, but without rhythm. With peace of mind. There are no gaps and it is predictable. Indeed, Bruno Genesio’s team’s first big chance was in Baptiste Santamaria’s header after a narrowly missed corner kick.
Mbappe and Messi gave their first signals before the break. Each of them had a chance and the Frenchman shot the post in the 40th minute.
The scene did not change after that, though fatigue took its toll on the visitors and Pochettino’s team found more space. This is where you feel comfortable. However, Rennes managed to score on another air ball from Gaetan Laborde. Mbappe was the main Parisian descent. The beginning has a bad definition. He also scored, at the time of the match, after a superb pass from Messi, but the goal was canceled for offside.
Di Maria and Wijnaldun took to the field to play the last 25 minutes. The match finally opened. The goal came when it seemed that the match was doomed to a draw. In a talented act by Mbappe in overtime. He received a cross pass from Messi and his cross shot landed on Dogan Almadar. The leader who is now waiting for the dangerous confrontation against Real Madrid did not need more.
“Lifelong travel trailblazer. Food nerd. Award-winning music enthusiast. Twitter guru.”