(Football News) Kylian Mbappe’s brace propelled him to the top of the French league’s goal-scoring leaderboard as Paris Saint-Germain secured a resounding 4-1 victory against a struggling Lyon side on Sunday, marking their most significant success of the season under new coach Luis Enrique.
However, the impressive final score should not overshadow the subpar defensive performance of the defending champions, PSG. PSG’s opening goal stemmed from a carelessly conceded penalty, two more resulted from counterattacks, and the last one was the outcome of a goalmouth scramble. All of PSG’s goals were scored in the first half against a lackluster Lyon team.
Captain Corentin Tolisso, who had expressed dissatisfaction with his team’s performance the previous weekend, failed to control a pass from his own goalkeeper and subsequently clumsily fouled PSG’s Manuel Ugarte, leading to an obvious penalty. In the fourth minute, Mbappé confidently struck the penalty down the middle, despite Portugal goalkeeper Anthony Lopes getting a leg to it.
In the 20th minute, right-back Achraf Hakimi capitalized on Lyon’s defensive mishap to bundle in a cross. Attacking midfielder Marco Asensio and Mbappé then clinically finished from swift counterattacks.
Mbappé has displayed excellent form since his return to the team after a transfer standoff. The French star has now scored five goals, putting him one ahead of Monaco striker Wissam Ben Yedder, a consistent competitor for the top scorer award in recent seasons, as well as Nantes forward Mostafa Mohamed.
Remaining unbeaten after four games, PSG moved into second place ahead of its bitter rival Marseille on goal difference. They are trailing leader Monaco, which boasts 10 points and an impressive 13 goals.
Despite PSG’s offensive prowess, their goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma had already made four crucial saves by the time Tolisso’s penalty reduced the deficit to 4-1 in the 74th minute. Additionally, new signing Ousmane Dembélé missed several opportunities for PSG due to erratic shooting.
