"He's the best player in the world" - Kylian Mbappe reveals why Lionel Messi took PSG's first penalty, says it's 'a privilege' to play with Argentine superstar
Kylian Mbappe allowed Lionel Messi to take the first penalty kick PSG earned in their Champions League clash with RB Leipzig last night. The French forward has revealed the reason behind the gesture, claiming it was an act of respect towards the best player on the planet.
He was quoted as saying:
"It’s normal, it’s respect. He [Lionel Messi] is the best player in the world, it’s a privilege he plays with us, I’ve always said it."
Mbappé: "Why did I leave the penalty to Messi? Normal. It's respect. He's the best player in the world. He comes to our team, it's a privilege that he comes to play with us. There is a penalty, he took it and scored. The 2nd, he wanted to give it to me, and I missed.” https://t.co/1lYMCKwo1b
"There’s a penalty, he takes it, period. For the second, he said, 'Take it'," the PSG winger added.
PSG moved a step further in their Champions League campaign this season with a hard-fought 3-2 victory over RB Leipzig last night. Kylian Mbappe wasn't totally convinced by the Parisians' performance but is happy they have moved to the top of the table in Group A.
The Frenchman remarked:
"We didn’t play badly either. I think there were some good things, some not so good perhaps, but when you play good teams there are always things which aren’t so good."
"It’s difficult in the Champions League. Every match is tough. At home in front of our fans, we’ve gone top of the group, that’s what we have to focus on.”
Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe were the stars of the show as PSG produced a defiant performance to seal all three points against RB Leipzig yesterday. The Frenchman opened the scoring in the ninth minute of the encounter. But the German side responded by scoring twice, with the second coming in the 57th minute.
Lots of humility shown by Mbappe in this and during the match. Him allowing Messi to take the penalty shows that he can be and is a team player. As for him calling Lionel Messi the best player in the world, he's not wrong. twitter.com/BarcaUniversal…
Lionel Messi restored parity with a beautiful strike 10 minutes later before securing the victory by converting from the spot in the 74th minute. Thanks to that result, PSG now sit atop the table in Group A, with seven points from their three Champions League games so far this season.
Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe giving PSG Champions League hopes
Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe are developing a beautiful connection that could propel PSG to claim the Champions League this season. Recall that the Frenchman provided an assist for his Argentine counterpart to score his first goal in the PSG shirt as well. That assist had come during the 2-0 victory against Manchester City on Matchday 2.
Their amazing chemistry came to the fore once again last night with Kylian Mbappe winning a penalty kick and allowing Lionel Messi to take it.