Paris Saint Germain star Kylian Mbappe was delighted after their 2-0 win against Real Sociedad in the first leg of the round of 16 in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday. The first half went goalless but Mbappe and Bradley Barcola scored for PSG in the second half.
Mbappe opened the scoring for PSG as he scored in the 58th minute whereas Barcola doubled the team’s lead after 12 minutes. PSG took six shots on target and dominated the possession with 63% but the visitors failed to take a single shot on target.
“We managed to score at key moments in the game. We have a good lead,” Mbappé told Canal Plus.
“The clean sheet is important for us, we’ve been looking for that in the Champions League, although it’s true that they [Sociedad] have not not been scoring much at the moment.
“It’s evident that we had trouble getting out of their pressing game in the first half. We should have shown more character to get out of it, as we were eight [players] against six.
“The return leg will be more open, they will attack more and we will be given more space. If we get the space over 40 meters, I think we will score over there.”
On the other hand, PSG captain Marquinhos admitted they were not at their best in the first half but they were able to turn the tables in the next 45 minutes after Luis Enrique motivated them.
“We struggled a lot in the first half. We spoke to each other at halftime and the coach [Luis Enrique] pulled our strings. He was really upset,” PSG captain Marquinhos told Canal Plus.
“Our attitude was much better in the second half. He [Enrique] always tells us the truth, and that’s very important for the team.
“He gave us some advice … and that worked well in the second half. The first part of our objective has been achieved. It’s important to win at home.”
PSG will next take on Nantes on Saturday night in Ligue 1.