Kylian Mbappe graduates in the Champions League
The French forward banged three against a bad Barcelona
Kylian Mbappe stood up and took it all on without Neymar and Di Maria by his side. A hat-trick killed Barcelona and made him the third player to score three against the Catalans in the Champions League in a game, behind Faustian Asprilla (3-1 v Newcastle) and Andriy Shevchenko (4-0 v Dinamo Kiev), both in 1997.
It was the first time that he has faced Barca and even after a minute there were signs he was going to have fun, racing through and seeing Ter Stegen just about stop him.
Five minutes after Messi broke the deadlock, Mbappe equalised, collecting a great pass from Verratti and rifling past Ter Stegen at the near post.
In the second half, he improved further still. Florenzi crossed, Mbappe collected and drilled hime.
Then, after Kean made it 3-1, Mbappe finished the game with a perfect curling finish.
Off he went, taking the ball with him under his arm. His second hat-trick in the Champions League, behind one as a sub against Bruges in 2019.
Mbappe has his doctorate in the Champions League. He has 24 goals in total in the competition, five this season.
These three goals against Barca join three against Borussia Dortmund, two against Man City, one against Bayern, Madrid, Liverpool, Man United and Juventus. The future is his, but the present is too.
LATEST EPISODE OF THE BEST FC BARCELONA PODCAST IN ENGLISH
Topics with the letter
