TWO missed penalties, a skied sitter and being taken off injured after just 21 minutes – Kylian Mbappe endured a nightmare evening as his Paris St-Germain side won at Montpellier.
The France striker had an early spot-kick saved and then – after a reprieve – saw his retake cannon off the post, only for him to fire the rebound over an empty net.
Mbappe limped off holding his hamstring soon after, less than a fortnight before PSG’s Champions League last-16 first-leg tie with Bayern Munich.
Speaking after the game, coach Christophe Galtier suggested the injury was down to a knock rather than a muscle problem.
“He took a knock to the back of the knee or the back of the thigh, so we’ll see,” said Galtier. “I’m not too worried. It’s a bruise or a contusion, we don’t know yet.
“With the run of matches we don’t want to take risks with a very busy fixture list, but it doesn’t appear that serious.”
Achraf Hakimi had an opener ruled out for the league leaders after the break before Fabian Ruiz broke the deadlock, poking home from close range.
Lionel Messi then slotted a second in from close range, after a first-half effort was ruled out for offside, before Arnaud Novin and Warren Zaire-Emery exchanged goals late on.
The win moves PSG five points clear at the top Ligue 1.
