Kylian Mbappe was upset as PSG held on for a draw against Borussia Dortmund (AFP via Getty)
Kylian Mbappe cut a frustrated figure at the end of Paris Saint-Germain’s 1-1 draw with Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday evening.
The result means PSG have secured their place in the Champions League round of 16 but the French club ended up in second place in Group F behind Dortmund.
PSG will now be placed with the unseeded teams in the Champions League last-16 draw on Monday, meaning that they could play either Bayern Munich, Arsenal, Real Madrid, Real Sociedad, Manchester City, Atletico Madrid or Barcelona in the knockout phase.
With AC Milan beating Newcastle United 2-1 at St James’ Park in the other game in Group F, PSG had the opportunity to pip Dortmund to top spot if they won in Germany.
However, PSG head coach Luis Enrique urged his players to hold out for the draw in the closing stages in order to avoid risking defeat – an instruction which did not go down well with Mbappe, who looked furious at the final whistle.
‘I understand his frustration,’ said former Arsenal midfielder and RMC Sport pundit Emmanuel Petit.
‘If I were in his place, I would not have understood the instructions from the bench either. We saw the bench get up and Achraf Hakimi tell his teammates to calm things down.
‘Mbappe doesn’t think like the majority of players. He’s right, I’m sorry, but he knows. He plans ahead and knows what’s going to happen. He knows very well who PSG could face next.
‘We know his ambitions, he doesn’t want to finish second and he knows there was room to finish first.’
In response to Mbappe’s reaction, Luis Enrique said: ‘It’s normal for the players to be frustrated, we had five chances to score, five very clear chances.
‘We would be a bit stupid to continue taking risks in the 85th minute with the possibility of conceding a goal and being eliminated. When a player is frustrated because he wants to score more goals, that’s when I intervene by having an overview to say, ‘yes we will win, but without taking excessive risks’.
‘When the emotions come down after the match, it’s the time to appreciate that it was a great qualification. It was the most difficult group in the competition. Many would have liked to see us dead, but we are very alive.’
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