The French football wonderboy needed just eight seconds to net for PSG against Lille
Mbappe struck in lightning-fast fashion. © Rico Brouwer / Soccrates / Getty Images
Kylian Mbappe went some way towards silencing his critics on Sunday by scoring the fastest Ligue 1 goal in 30 years for Paris Saint Germain when they demolished Lille 7-1 away.
The 2018 World Cup winner has been in the headlines for the wrong reasons as of late, with reports suggesting he and Neymar have clashed over Mbappe’s support for the Brazilian possibly being sold.
Last weekend, the pair publicly locked horns over who took their team’s penalties against Montpellier and were then rumored to have had an altercation backstage at the Parc des Princes where Sergio Ramos acted as peacemaker.
Mbappe was also widely-criticized for giving up on a counter attack when Vitinha passed the ball to Lionel Messi and not him in that 5-2 rout.
And though RMC Sport put this down to “personal issues”, the 23-year-old seemed to have put those behind them by flying out of the tracks against 2020/2021 champions Lille at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy.
Set up by Messi, with the Ballon d’Or holder notching his second assist of the season, Mbappe took just eight seconds to ping the ball into Lille’s net and went on to complete his hat trick in the second half with further strikes in the 66th and 87th minute.
📺 The highlights and all the goals from the Parisian win in Lille (1-7)! 🔴🔵#LOSCPSGpic.twitter.com/FPkqfweqXa
— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English) August 21, 2022
Neymar got in on the scoring with a brace himself completed on either side of the half time whistle, and he also racked up a hat trick of assists by providing twice for Mbappe and once for Achraf Hakimi.
Neymar and Mbappe linked up excellently on the goals they were involved in and were all hugs and smiles when the ball went in the back of the net.
Above all, this suggested that they might have already buried the hatchet when sporting director Luis Campos reportedly called them in for talks to clear the air.
With Messi also netting near the half hour mark, all three of PSG’s big superstars have started 2022/2023 in excellent form which bodes well for their respective countries in Argentina, France and Brazil at the World Cup in Qatar later this year.
Taking over from the fired Mauricio Pochettino, who some say was dismissed on Mbappe’s orders when he signed a contract extension until 2025 and snubbed Real Madrid, new head coach Christophe Galtier appears to have kicked an underperforming squad into shape.
The ex-Nice tactician has overseen his new charges score 17 goals in their first three victorious games, and they have risen to the top of the league by two points already.
While PSG look set to run away with Ligue 1 this term if they keep up their current high level performances, what happens in the Champions League will ultimately decide how long Galtier stays in the hotseat.
On Thursday this week, the Qatari-backed giants will learn who stands in their way of finally getting to land the iconic big-eared trophy in the group phase.
