Oddly Paris Saint-Germain have seemed to be experiencing an uneasy quirk of fate in the form of one Paris Saint-Germain superstar who somehow unexpectedly ended up injured ahead of vital Champions League ties in recent seasons.
In 2018 it was striker Neymar who was carried off the pitch on a stretcher after sustaining a severe ankle injury during a league game against Marseille, resulting in the world’s most expensive footballer missing the second leg of their massive showdown with defending champions Real Madrid.
The following year Neymar sustained another injury, this time to his metatarsal after twisting his foot during a Coupe de France encounter with Strasbourg, which forced him out of action the blockbuster clash with Manchester United.
This time around the same thing occurred on Thursday when PSG issued confirmation that their Qatar World Cup Golden Boot winner Kylian Mbappe would miss the first leg of their heavyweight tie against Bayern Munich on February 14, with the club statement on Thursday reading: “After undergoing tests, Mbappe suffered an injury to the left thigh at the level of the femoral biceps.”
The French World Cup star, winner of the World Cup Golden Boot with eight goals and a historic hat-trick in the final, was injured in Wednesday’s 3-1 win at Montpellier and will be out of action for at least three weeks.
This will obviously be a massive blow for the Ligue 1 titans, who can’t wait to prove they are capable of achieving Champions League top honors, after having been eliminated in the last 16 in four of the last six campaigns.
Clearly Mbappe’s role and significance are vital to PSG as the 24-year-old has netted 25 goals in 26 appearances for the Parc des Princes club this season. Although only 24, he is only a few goals away from being the club’s all-time top scorer.
Another layer adding to the cloudy skies for PSG in their impending clash with Bayern is the news that their erstwhile defender Sergio Ramos also exited the Montpellier clash with an injury that could be potentially serious and could be sidelined indefinitely after further tests.
Compounding this, Neymar is also still recovering from an ankle problem suffered at the World Cup and the Brazilian remains doubtful for the Bayern encounter.
In the proverbial nutshell, this simply means all the pressure will now fall squarely on the squat shoulders of their only remaining superstar Lionel Messi.
It would be really fascinating to see how the 35-year-old veteran, who defied the odds to outclass Mbappe and captain Argentina to ultimate glory in Qatar, pulls out of his amazing magician’s hat as he faces another massive test of character.