PSG were totally dominant — as Edinson Cavani saw a header brilliantly kept out by Amiens goalkeeper Regis Gurtner — but doubled the advantage three minutes before the break with almost a carbon-copy of the first goal.
Paris Saint-Germain continued the blistering start to their Ligue 1 title defence with a record-extending 10th straight win as Mbappe scored in a 5-0 thrashing of Amiens on Saturday.
Coach Thomas Tuchel left key men Neymar, Thiago Silva and Thomas Meunier out of the squad altogether at the Parc des Princes with Wednesday’s Champions League clash with Napoli in mind, but PSG had more than enough to see off Amiens.
“Everyone thinks that Ligue 1 might be too easy to prepare for the Champions League, but it’s not like that,” insisted Tuchel, who took over the reins from Unai Emery in the close-season.
“That would mean you’re blaming the other teams, but we focus on ourselves. Nobody won 10 games in a row, and we did it.
“It’s not (easy). We will be ready (for Napoli), because we’re setting our own limits.”
Brazilian centre-back Marquinhos nodded the hosts into a 12th-minute lead and Adrien Rabiot made it two shortly before half-time.
Germany winger Julian Draxler grabbed the third headed goal of the game, and the 19-year-old Mbappe fired in late on to score his ninth goal in just six league matches this season.
It was a horrid mismatch with Amiens utterly outclassed, and teenager Moussa Diaby came off the bench to complete the rout as the capital-city giants stretched their commanding lead at the top of the table to 11 points.
“It wasn’t a great performance. We deserved to win, but maybe the scoreline was a little big,” admitted Tuchel.
- PSG totally dominant –
The champions did not waste much time in forging ahead, as Marquinhos met Angel Di Maria’s inswinging corner with a flicked header into the bottom corner to score his first Ligue 1 goal since May 2017.
PSG were totally dominant — as Edinson Cavani saw a header brilliantly kept out by Amiens goalkeeper Regis Gurtner — but doubled the advantage three minutes before the break with almost a carbon-copy of the first goal.
Di Maria curled in another corner from the right, and this time it was Rabiot who made the near-post run and directed a header into the same corner that Marquinhos had found half an hour earlier.
Cavani wasted a golden opportunity by volleying wide from barely two yards out, but the match was as good as over heading into the second half.
Tuchel’s men appeared to have their attentions firmly focused on Napoli as they slipped into cruise control in the second half, happy the stroke the ball around under little to no pressure from an Amiens outfit seemingly pleased to limit the damage.
Colombian forward Juan Ortero should have made it a nervy last 10 minutes for the home side when he headed into the side netting from close range, but PSG went straight up the other end and scored again.
Juan Bernat’s left-wing cross was deflected, but Draxler was allowed acres of space to adjust his body and send a powerful header flying into the net.
A totally outclassed Amiens quickly saw PSG add a fourth despite having barely got out of second gear, as Mbappe latched onto Diaby’s pass after a flowing move and drilled home.
Diaby, 19, was given the freedom of the visitors’ area to stroll through the middle and slot in PSG’s third goal in seven minutes and round off the most comfortable of victories.
Later on Saturday, Thierry Henry takes charge of freefalling Monaco for the first time at Strasbourg, while second-placed Lille visit Dijon.
AFP
