Paris Saint-Germain was able to count on Kylian Mbappé to sign an important victory against Leipzig (3-2) on the occasion of the third day of the Champions League. If the Germans posed a lot of concerns for the Parisian team, Maurcio Pochettino’s men feel they have deserved their success.
Kylian Mbappé (PSG, at the microphone of Canal +): “All the matches are difficult, but we take the lead of the group. There were good things and faced with such teams we also know that there are less well. A lucky result? No. Luck does not exist in these kinds of matches. Leipzig are a good team. But we were settled in their camp, we combined well. There are periods in the game that are a little too weak. (On the first penalty left to Lionel Messi). It’s normal, he’s the best player in the world and I’ve always said it was a privilege to see him play with us. The first, he has to shoot it. He left me the second one and I missed it.“
Ander Herrera (PSG, at a press conference) : “It was a very close game. they made the game difficult for us, we started well, we had chances, but after 20-25 minutes, we lost some balls which brought them into the game. We deserved the victory, even if they had chances. We need to improve. We have to maintain our level at the start of the match. We had a fantastic attitude. We lost balls that we should not lose and that gave courage to the opponent. We must master for 90 minutes, but we take the path. We must also remember that they needed to win. In the Champions League, it’s never easy.“
Mauricio Pochettino (PSG coach, at a press conference): “It was a complicated game, but we have the satisfaction of having shown character to get back to 2-1. Things have to be corrected, we lost too many balls in the first half under pressure from Leipzig, our midfielders went down too much and we had trouble connecting with our attackers. In difficult times, we conceded two goals in the counterattack where we had the numerical superiority, we have to improve. We had possession, but we prefer to have it higher up the field. It takes time, we are a team under construction. But I also saw some good things offensively, which are improving, and which will work better over time. Messi and Mbappé? In matches where it’s difficult to find collective solutions, that’s where you can count on players like them. Talents are easily found, there is no time for these automatisms to come back more easily. “