Football

Kylian Mbappe bags hat-trick as PSG hit six against Montpellier

An unstoppable Kylian Mbappe hit a hat-trick as Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) romped to a 6-2 win away to Montpellier on Sunday that allowed them to open up a huge 12-point lead at the top of Ligue 1.

Vitinha put PSG ahead at the Stade de la Mosson and Kylian Mbappe doubled their advantage midway through the first half, only for an Arnaud Nordin header and a Teji Savanier penalty to bring Montpellier back level at the interval.

However, a marvellous Mbappe goal restored PSG’s lead shortly after the break and Lee Kang-in made it 4-2 before the France captain completed his hat-trick.

Nuno Mendes put the seal on the victory late on, as Luis Enrique’s side ended a run of three successive draws in Ligue 1 and extended an unbeaten domestic record stretching back to September.

A 1-1 draw for nearest challengers Brest against Lille means the Parisians are 12 points ahead at the Ligue 1 summit with only eight games left, and a 10th title in 12 seasons is an inevitability.

Mbappe completed the whole 90 minutes of a Ligue 1 game for the first time since informing the club in mid-February that he intended to leave at the end of the season when his contract expires.

His hat-trick, his third of the campaign, took him to 24 goals in Ligue 1 this season, and 38 in all competitions.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

Mbappe’s second of the evening, PSG’s third, was the pick of the bunch, as he found the net with a superb shot from range which went in off the underside of the crossbar.

The downside of their performance came with the way in which they surrendered their 2-0 lead in the first half, conceding the penalty when Tanguy Coulibaly pounced on Danilo Pereira’s short back-pass and was then clattered by PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma.

The defeat for Montpellier leaves them just a point above third-bottom Nantes, who are in the relegation play-off place and on Sunday sacked coach Jocelyn Gourvennec.

Canadian striker Jonathan David continued his superb form in front of goal by scoring for Lille in their draw away to fellow Champions League contenders Brest.

David gave Lille the lead midway through the second half in Brittany with his 22nd goal of the season in all competitions, and his 15th since the turn of the calendar year.

The 24-year-old has netted 10 times in his team’s last nine Ligue 1 outings. His total of 15 in Ligue 1 this season is bettered only by Mbappe.

However, that goal was not enough to win the game, as Uruguayan striker Martin Satriano poked in a late equaliser for Brest, who remain second.

READ: Saim Ayub goes past Haider Ali to achieve major T20 landmark

Recent Posts

Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Rizwan guide Pakistan to victory over Ireland

DUBLIN: Mohammad Rizwan and Fakhar Zaman scored half-centuries, followed by Azam Khan's blistering cameo helped…

13 hours ago

Pakistan win toss, elect to bowl first against Ireland in second T20I

DUBLIN: Pakistan have won the toss and elected to field first against Ireland in the…

15 hours ago

Pakistan vs Ireland: Toss delayed due to rain in Dublin

DUBLIN: The toss of the second T20I between Pakistan and Ireland has been delayed due…

15 hours ago

Holstein Kiel promoted to Bundesliga for first time

Holstein Kiel reached the Bundesliga for the first time in their history following a 1-1…

15 hours ago

AB de Villiers extends best wishes to retiring James Anderson

Former captain of South Africa AB de Villiers has extended his best wishes to England’s…

16 hours ago

Ramiz Raja warns ‘USA might give tough time to Pakistan’ in T20 World Cup

Former Pakistani captain and renowned commentator Ramiz Raja has warned that the United States of…

17 hours ago