Kylian Mbappe on Wednesday scored twice to take his season tally to 20 in Paris Saint-Germain’s 4-1 rout of his former club AS Monaco.
The victory kept PSG eight points clear at the top of the Ligue 1 table. They also registered their 50th goal of the campaign from 20 league matches.
Last weekend, Monaco came away from PSG with a point in a thrilling 3-3 draw in Paris, but they posed no similar threat just three days later.
Photo: AFP
Mbappe was on target in the 24th and 90th minutes, with Neymar tucking away a penalty in first-half stoppage-time.
Pablo Sarabia added another in the 73rd minute, just seconds after coming on as a substitute.
Striker Ibrahima Bakayoko grabbed a late consolation for Monaco.
“In every area, we were better than on Sunday,” PSG coach Thomas Tuchel said. “It’s a deserved victory. We had lots of possession.”
Tuchel decision to field his “Fab Four” attacking stars — Mbappe, Neymar, Mauro Icardi and Angel di Maria — paid dividends when Di Maria floated over a cross for Mbappe to score the opener.
Monaco goalkeeper Benjamin Lecomte denied Mbappe on two other occasions in the first half.
Neymar made it 2-0 from the penalty spot in stoppage-time after Kamil Glik fouled Layvin Kurzawa.
Sarabia’s goal was set up by fellow substitute Marco Verratti before Mbappe completed the rout of the club that he had joined in 2015.
“With our four attackers, we can carry out our plan,” Tuchel said. “We have the best players, but I also want to have the best team in each match.”
For Monaco coach Robert Moreno, the defeat was a sobering experience coming after Sunday’s encouraging draw.
“I am very happy and proud of my team,” Moreno said after his first home game in charge saw Monaco’s six-match win streak at Stade Louis II end. “At 3-1, we took risks, but had we scored a second, then the mental situation would have changed and the last few minutes would have been interesting.”
Stade Rennais are third in the table, five points behind Olympique de Marseille and 13 off PSG after a 1-0 win over Nimes Olympique.
Adrien Hunou scored the winner in the 64th minute to ensure a sixth win in the past seven games.
Nimes are second bottom, three points behind Amiens SC, who drew 1-1 at home to Stade de Reims.
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