Kylian Mbappe might have performed extremely well in the World Cup final, but he can’t deal with the pressure of a cold Wednesday night in Montpellier.
The Paris Saint-German superstar had more than two chances from the spot in the Ligue 1 clash, but was denied on both occasions by Montpellier goalkeeper Benjamin Lecomte.
On 18th Dec 2022 He wasn’t threatened by Argentina’s Emi Martinez, putting the ball past him on four occasions, and it seemed to be the greatest individual performance ever in a World Cup final, with Mbappe having more goals at that stage than any player in history.
Mbappe was given the opportunity to bite straight back from the spot against Montpellier.
Lecomte, though, read his eighth minute penalty perfectly, getting both hands to a shot destined for the bottom left corner of his net.
It was the goalkeeper’s second penalty save in his second appearance for his new side, but it appeared to be in vain when the match referee was advised he left his line.
The penalty had to be retaken, with Mbappe getting a second chance, aiming for the right side this time, and Lecomte managed to get a fingertip on the effort, putting it on the post.
Even worse than a second miss in two minutes for Mbappe, the rebound then came straight back to him, which he managed to send it over the bar.
It didn’t cost his side the three points with second-half goals from Fabian Ruiz, Lionel Messi and Warren Zaire-Emery securing PSG a 3-1 victory.
But shortly after the misses, Mbappe jumped from the frying pan into the fire when he made way for Hugo Ekitike in the 21st minute with an injury.
That could prove crucial for PSG, who have a number of sides breathing down their neck in the title race with only 5points ahead of Marseille, while Bayern Munich await in the Champions League Round of 16 on Valentine’s Day.
By Eugine Ojiambo (DJ Katta)
