PARIS: Paris St Germain coach Mauricio Pochettino was delighted together with his group’s efficiency as they beat Real Madrid of their Champions League last-16, first leg on Tuesday, however had a particular reward for Kylian Mbappe’s elegant late strike.
Mbappe spared PSG a irritating evening as he skipped by means of the Real defence in stoppage time to safe a 1-0 win.
“It’s a slim win maybe but it surely provides us hope for the sport in Madrid,” Pochettino told reporters.
“I’m happy with the performance and I hope we can continue to give this kind of performance in future.”
Despite his disappointment at a penalty miss by his fellow Argentine Lionel Messi, the coach expressed satisfaction with how PSG dominated possession and stifled Real.
Calling Mbappe “among the finest gamers on the earth”, he joked that his joy at the late goal turned to pain as the France forward inadvertently hit his coach’s nose during a touchline celebration.
His Real counterpart Carlo Ancelotti was also optimistic for the second leg but was left ruing his side’s struggles in possession, while he was unhappy with the yellow cards that will deprive him of Casemiro and Ferland Mendy in the second leg in Madrid.
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