CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
How many goals has Kylian Mbappé scored against Barcelona? What is his record?
Mbappé played a key role in the Paris Saint-Germain team that knocked Barça out of the Champions League in 2021.
Barcelona return to the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time in four years on Wednesday night when they face Paris Saint-Germain at the Parc des Princes. And head coach Xavi Hernández will be well aware that stopping Kylian Mbappé, strongly rumoured to be joining Real Madrid in the summer, will be crucial if his team is to progress to the last four.
How many goals has Kylian Mbappé scored for PSG this season?
With the France captain set to leave PSG in the summer, head coach Luis Enrique has used him somewhat sporadically in domestic games in recent weeks, although he is expected to play a key role in Europe’s elite club competition.
Despite his recent “disagreements” with his manager, Mbappé has 39 goals in 40 appearances in all competitions this season, with includes six strikes in eight Champions League matches. The 25-year-old needs just four more goals to break his own single-season goalscoring record, which he set in 2020/21.
Mbappé faster than Messi and Ronaldo in the Champions League
The former Monaco attacker has scored 46 goals in 69 UCL games overall, reaching 40 in the competition in 59 appearances, faster than the likes of Lionel Messi (61 games), Cristiano Ronaldo (82) and Robert Lewandowski (61), with only Erling Haaland (35), Ruud van Nistelrooy (45) and Karim Benzema (57) ahead of him on that particular list.
And four of those 46 goals have come against Barcelona, despite the fact he has only ever appeared against them twice.
Mbappé's hat-trick in last PSG - Barcelona tie
Mbappé put Barcelona to the sword in the round of 16 in the 2020/21 season, scoring a memorable hat-trick at Camp Nou in a 4-1 victory for the French side. Messi had earlier put the Catalans in front via a penalty before his future PSG teammate took centre stage.
Although the Ligue 1 team didn’t win the second leg, Mbappé found the net once more - also from the spot - in a 1-1 draw, with Messi again scoring for Barça.
Paris Saint-Germain were the last team to knock Barcelona out of the Champions League in the knockout rounds all the way back in 2021; will they also be the next one? If so, Mbappé will surely have a big say before potentially becoming a regular thorn in La Blaugrana’s side in LaLiga.