Who said what: Football world reacts to Paris Saint-Germain's 4-1 demolition of Barcelona
Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain's hotly-anticipated UEFA Champions League Round of 16 encounter at the Camp Nou ended in a resounding 4-1 success for the Ligue 1 champions. Kylian Mbappe took center stage for the Parisian giants in the absence of Neymar and produced a matchwinning performance, as he scored a historic treble against the Catalans.
Lionel Messi and Barcelona came into the game in a rich vein of form, but they were brushed aside by a clinical Paris Saint-Germain performance. Ronald Koeman's side showed flashes of brilliance, but the French champions put the game to the sword after a stunning showing in the second half.
Barcelona broke the deadlock in the first half, as Lionel Messi calmly dispatched a penalty after Layvin Kurzawa brought down Frenkie de Jong inside the box. Paris Saint-Germain, however, struck back almost immediately, as Mbappe latched onto a pass from Marco Verratti to restore parity.
Mbappe puts Barcelona to the sword with outstanding display for Paris Saint-Germain
The Frenchman compounded Barcelona's misery by adding two more goals to his tally in the second half, while Everton loanee Moise Kean also got his name on the scoresheet for the away side.
Speaking after the game, Barcelona manager Ronald Koeman admitted that Paris Saint-Germain were by far the superior team in the second half.
"We have to improve things and we knew that this could happen to us. They are ahead of us. Having lost 1-4 at home, there are very few options to come back, you have to be realistic."
"Today it has been shown that we lack things to be at the best level, especially at a Champions League level."
The Parisian giants now have one foot in the quarterfinals and will look to finish the job in the second leg, with Neymar scheduled to make an appearance against his former club provided he recovers from his adductor injury.
On that note, here is how the footballing world reacted to Paris Saint-Germain's humbling of Barcelona at the Camp Nou.
Kylian Mbappe was the talk of the town...
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Brutally honest reactions from those involved with Barcelona...