Kylian Mbappe Silences The Noise, Sends PSG To UCL Quarterfinals

I am going to miss watching him play for my favorite football club so much

The Champions League is when the most special players step up on the most special nights.

That was clear Tuesday night in San Sebastian, as the world’s most special player showed what makes him so incredible.

On a star-studded night, Kylian Mbappe shined brightest. Amid all the controversy, Paris Saint-Germain’s superstar talent stepped up and delivered the exact performance his team needed to send them through to the Champions League Quarterfinals.

It has been a wild few weeks in the French capital since Mbappe informed the club of his decision to leave. All that noise quickly disappeared Tuesday night as Mbappe bagged two goals to help PSG advance past Real Sociedad.

Mbappe was right on it from the jump, coming out with a clear hunger to deliver a masterclass. Despite entering with a 2-0 lead in the tie, PSG never looked like a team content to sit on the lead and see it out.

The club has been on the wrong end of Champions League disasters one too many times, and delivered a mature performance Tuesday night to see things through. The Parisians came right at Sociedad, and it all started with Mbappe.

He opened the scoring in the 15th minute with an absolutely stunning strike that you must see to believe. Mbappe caught up to a long pass from Ousmane Dembele, settled it, then fired a shot from an insanely difficult angle inside the far post. His shot had so much power behind it, that it actually tore the net.

Up 1-0 and 3-0 on aggregate, PSG were able to throw it all at Sociedad with full confidence. Mbappe created numerous chances, and had some more himself, as PSG dominated the game for most of the first half.

In the 56th minute, Mbappe put it all to bed with his signature goal. After some wonderful team play that involved 16 passes, Mbappe got in behind on a ball played over the top and took off for the hills. He cut inside, setting the goalie up to go towards the far post, but cut the finish back inside the near post for the goal.

This has become the move he is best known for, and it is absolutely lethal. Once he is open space and has the keeper leaning, he rarely misses on this finish. The second I saw him take off running, I knew PSG were about to get their second and finish off the tie for good.

I mean this is why they call football The Beautiful Game. When Kylian Mbappe is in the open field he is completely unstoppable, and there is nothing I enjoy watching more in all of sports.

The best part of the performance is that, just for a moment, I was able to forget that he is leaving PSG at the end of this season. All the noise and storylines that have been circulating around the club the last few weeks disappeared, if only for 90 minutes.

After the bizarre scene last week when Mbappe watched the second half against Monaco from the stands, it is clear that hatchet is buried.

It was reported that Mbappe met with manager, Luis Enrique, and the two discussed plans for the rest of the season. Enrique apparently told Mbappe he is still counting on him in the UCL, but will use the league season to prepare his squad for life without Kylian.

I have gone on record as saying this is the best move for PSG, and that plan is clearly in place. Mbappe not only played all 90 minutes Tuesday, but wore the captain’s armband and was a vocal leader on the field all night. He is playing hard for PSG and tonight showed he remains hungry to accomplish something special before he hits the road.

In my eyes, PSG have their best chance to do so in years. This is their first appearance in the Quarterfinals since 2021, when they advanced to the Semifinals. The year before, they reached the Finals in the pandemic-affected single-elimination format.

However, since then they have faltered. PSG went out in the Round of 16 in each of the last two seasons, the two years in which Lionel Messi played for the club.

You do the math.

PSG are more balanced than they may have ever been, and this team has taken the knocks and knows how to get through them. They also have a manager that has brought a maturity to the squad in big games, especially in the Champions League.

Nobody has brought more maturity to the Champions League than Mbappe though. He is already so, so great, but he comes to life even more on the biggest stages. There is no bigger annual stage than the Champions League, and Mbappe now has 72 goal involvements (46 goals, 26 assists) in 69 UCL games.

Not to mention, he scored a fucking hat trick in the fucking World Cup Final, coming insanely close to denying Messi and destiny.

This was not quite that, but it was a huge performance that showed why he has gotten the reputation as a big-game player.

This should put to rest a lot of the chatter about Mbappe’s playing time. It is clear Enrique and the club are still relying on him in the biggest games of the season. With the Ligue 1 title in hand, those games give the manager a chance to tinker with the squad and gain experience without Mbappe.

Thankfully, he is still there, and I will certainly be enjoying every second of him playing for my favorite club while I can. I hope all fans will do the same, and it seems Mbappe will as well.

With the drama hopefully in the rearview, PSG can turn their focus towards what they have left to accomplish this season. They will find out their Quarterfinal opponent on March 15, and still remain in contention for the Coupe De France as well. I imagine Mbappe will also be counted on in that competition, as PSG hope to recapture it for the first time since 2021. In fact, PSG have failed to even reach the last two finals of the Coupe De France while Messi was with the club.

Again, you do the math.

This is the only math PSG needs to do over the next few weeks: Mbappe=the best player in the world. It is time to put the drama to bed and just enjoy him while we can.