Mbappe at the double as PSG breezes past La Real
Kylian Mbappe’s brace saw Paris St Germain cruise into the quarter-finals of the Champions League with a 2-1 win away to Real Sociedad completing a 4-1 aggregate victory.
Mbappe should soon play in the same league as Sociedad once his long-mooted Real Madrid move is complete but he showed he is a level above the San Sebastian side with his clinical finishing making the difference on the night.
With a 2-0 lead in their pocket from the first leg, PSG were comfortable throughout, with the only blot coming when Mikel Merino scored a consolation goal a minute from time.
Mbappe, the top scorer across Europe’s top five leagues so far this season, offered an early warning sign when he turned a shot narrowly over the bar from Fabian Ruiz’s cut-back in the fifth minute.
Sociedad went to the other end, where PSG defender Nuno Mendes was relieved to see his header go just wide of the post as he cut out Sheraldo Becker’s cross.
PSG were the dominant force and they went ahead after 15 minutes through Mbappe’s fifth Champions League goal of the season.
Ousmane Dembele played the ball into the left channel and the France striker cut back from the byline and bent the ball across goal and inside the far post, leaving Sociedad goalkeeper Alex Remiro, unsighted by his own defenders, rooted to the spot.
Remiro would have better luck in the 29th minute when he made a superb save to keep out Mbappe’s low shot at his front post, but PSG were bossing the game.
Sociedad’s most dangerous moment came late in the half when Takefusa Kubo’s shot from range sailed just wide of Gianluigi Donnarumma’s post.
But 11 minutes into the second half, Mbappe killed off any remaining sense that Sociedad were in the contest.
Lee Kang-In’s ball through gave Mbappe the freedom to run at goal uncontested, and he opened up his body as if shaping for the far post before whipping the ball in at the near post with Remiro wrong-footed.
Sociedad had the ball in the net in the 63rd minute when Ander Barrenetxea headed home but the flag went up for offside.
Sociedad took encouragement as they stepped up their attacks, having found fresh impetus from a series of substitutions.
Merino turned his chance wide from the centre of the area and, late on, Jon Ander Olasagasti saw his close-range effort deflected over the crossbar.
They would finally reward the vocal support of their fans at the very end. Benat Turrientes drilled in a cross from the right, Donnarumma got a strong hand to it but could only push it out to Merino, who had a relatively simple task to rifle home from the centre of the goal.
