As Paris Saint-Germain prepares for their UEFA Champions League Round of 16 matchup against FC Barcelona, they’ll be doing so without Neymar Jr. and Ángel Di María.
With two significant figures of the capital club’s attack sidelined, many see Kylian Mbappé shouldering the load of PSG’s offense at the Camp Nou. However, for former Parisien midfielder Edouard Cissé, he doesn’t want the 22-year-old thinking he needs to be the hero against Barça.
In an interview with L’Equipe (via Canal Supporters), less is more for Cissé. Despite not having his usual teammates in Neymar and Di María, Mbappé still has talent in the starting eleven, where he doesn’t need to do it all by himself.
“I can not wait to see that. I hope he doesn’t play to be the hero but becomes one and does what is expected of him. Let him score and be patient, confident in his partners because his team will not have the ball much,” Cissé said.
“Mbappé should not go too low to organize the game. It is not his role, and he will have Paredes and Verratti to pass him. After that, PSG will still have to know how to keep the ball when it gets it. In any case, Mbappé will be judged on his maturity during this match, not because it is Barça but because he is without Neymar and Di Maria.”
All the attention will be on Mbappé against the Spanish club, but he must rely on his teammates. The France international doesn’t need to dribble past all the Barça defender.
Furthermore, as Cissé stated, the midfield will get him the ball, and he will have finishers like Moise Kean and Mauro Icardi who can put the ball in the net should he decide to pass rather than take an ineffective shot.
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