BARCELONA • Roma, Liverpool, Bayern Munich and now Paris Saint-Germain.
Barcelona are staring at their fourth straight Champions League knockout humiliation after being thrashed 4-1 by PSG in the first leg of the last 16 at the Nou Camp on Tuesday.
Kylian Mbappe became the first player to net a hat-trick at Barca in European football's elite club competition since Andriy Shevchenko did so for Dynamo Kiev in November 1997, over a year before the French international was born.
One of the key men in Les Bleus' 2018 World Cup triumph as a teenager, the 22-year-old, playing at the Nou Camp for the first time, again stood tall on a big occasion, promptly cancelling out Lionel Messi's penalty in the first half before striking twice after the break.
In between, Everton loanee Moise Kean added another goal for PSG, who will be confident of finishing the job in the reverse leg at the Parc des Princes next month.
While Mbappe's virtuoso display is set to prolong Barca's wait for a first Champions League trophy since 2014-15 - the last time they also reached the final - the Catalans admitted they could not handle the pacy front man.
France teammate and Barca forward Antoine Griezmann said: "Kylian had a great night. PSG have a star for the future, who will be at the same level as Leo Messi or Cristiano (Ronaldo)."
PSG coach Mauricio Pochettino also heaped praise on Mbappe, who helped the Argentinian, who was appointed last month, record only his second victory over Barca as a coach.
"It's obvious that Kylian is a great footballer," the 48-year-old said.
"He proved that with his three goals but he also showed real commitment by getting involved with defensive work too. He's a top guy."
While the victory was impressive as the visitors were missing the injured Neymar and Angel di Maria, Mbappe wants his teammates to not lose sight of their goal - PSG are seeking to win their first Champions League, having fallen short in their maiden final last season.
"This match was magnificent but we have won nothing. We are fully focused on our objectives," he said.
REUTERS
