“How do you ignore the context?” Kylian Mbappé asked. “Easy: play football.” And better than anyone else. Everybody knew he was special, a World Cup winner at 19, his goal in the final against Croatia one of more than 200 he has scored already aged 23, the man for whom Paris Saint-Germain turned down €200m even as they knew that would probably mean losing him for free, but this was still a moment that hit you in the face.
It hit Mauricio Pochettino, at least. Asked what he felt when Mbappé scored the 94th-minute winner here against Real Madrid, the PSG coach replied: “Two things. First, happiness. Then, pain. Leandro Paredes leapt into me so hard that I thought I had broken my nose.” Along the touchline, Mbappé was going wild, teammates piling in. There was no choreography, and no apology either, no sign of mixed emotions, just release. Maybe a touch of vindication too. There, told you.
