‘I didn’t do enough,’ laments Mbappé after PSG exit Champions League

Paris St-Germain forward Kylian Mbappé shouldered the blame for their 1-0 defeat to Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday which saw them exit the Champions League semifinals 2-0 on aggregate.

Mbappé, who is set to leave PSG in the summer with Real Madrid a likely destination, missed two good chances in the second leg at the Parc des Princes.

“I tried to help my team as best as I could but I didn't do enough,” Mbappé said.

“I'm the guy who should score goals and be decisive. When things are good, I take all the limelight and when they are not, you have to take the shadow.

“That's not a problem. The first one who should have scored tonight was me. That's life and we have to move on, me and the team.”

PSG enjoyed the lion's share of possession and took four times as many shots as their opponents did, hitting the woodwork four times.

“In decisive Champions League matches, when you're not effective in both boxes, it's difficult to get through to the next round,” Mbappé said. “Even more so when we're talking about a final.

“We're certainly disappointed, but as I said, it's not all doom and gloom. We need to build on that and keep working, because I'm sure we'll get there.”

PSG have already wrapped up the Ligue 1 title and still have the French Cup to play for with Olympique Lyonnais their opponents in the final on May 25. 

PSG missed a golden opportunity to reach their second Champions League final, but it was not all doom and gloom at the French club after a season of transition with a new coach.

The Ligue 1 champions were knocked out having hit the woodwork six times over the two legs and managed 31 attempts in Paris.

“We were not inferior over the two legs, but football rewards those who score not those who hit the woodwork,” PSG coach Luis Enrique said.

“My goal was to be fighting for all the titles. Tonight I'm proud of my team, of all the players.”

PSG won the Ligue 1 title and have the French Cup final to come later this month.

“We weren't efficient, they were efficient, they scored two goals and won both matches. There's a lot to take back from this competition,” captain Marquinhos said.

“At the start of the season, nobody believed we'd get this far. We've overcome a lot of obstacles, but we can't throw everything away now just because we've been eliminated. We have to remember that this is a new project, with a new coach.

“There are positive things to take into the next season.”

PSG have now lost all six legs of their three two-legged Champions League semifinals, after double defeats against AC Milan in 1995 and Manchester City in 2021.

The year they reached the final, in 2020, they beat RB Leipzig in a one-off semifinal after Covid-19 disrupted the season. They lost in the final against Bayern Munich.

This season started with a new coach in Luis Enrique and without Lionel Messi and Neymar as club president Nasser al-Khelaifi put an emphasis on building a team over individual talents.

While not always brilliant, PSG have looked like an organised outfit and the coach said he was already working on building a team without Mbappé.

“The players and coach gave their all. Congratulations to Dortmund, we deserved better. It's a tough game. I'm proud of my team, the youngest in Europe,” Al-Khelaifi said.

“We've reached the semifinals three times in five years. That's not our objective, it's still the final. That's soccer, you have to accept it and sometimes it's not fair. We'll accept it.” 

Reuters