Mbappe breaks goal record as PSG win ahead of Bayern showdown

Paris, France – Kylian Mbappe became Paris Saint-Germain’s top scorer with his 201st goal for the club as the Ligue 1 leaders warmed up for their trip to Bayern Munich with a 4-2 win over Nantes on Saturday.

The French superstar equaled Edinson Cavani’s previous record of 200 goals with a brace in last week’s win at Marseille and went one better by scoring in stoppage time at the Parc des Princes.

PSG had earlier thrown away a two-goal lead, Lionel Messi’s header and Jaouen Hadjam’s own goal making it 2-0 on 17 minutes before Nantes fought back to level.

Ludovic Blas pulled one back for the visitors and Ignatius Ganago equalised, but Mbappe set up Danilo Pereira to put PSG back in front on the hour mark and then claimed a record-breaking goal late on.

Mbappe has made just 247 appearances since signing from Monaco as an 18-year-old in 2017.

Uruguayan star Cavani needed 298 games, and seven years, to break the previous record in 2020.

Mbappe, 24, was presented with a trophy by the club after the match to mark a record-breaking presentation on the pitch.

“I played to make history and I always said that I want to make history in France, in the capital of my country, in my city, and I did it. It’s great, but there’s still a lot to do,” Mbappe, who finished the match as captain, told broadcasters Canal Plus.

“For me, as a native of Paris, this is special. If someone had told me that I would score a goal to break the record while wearing the captain’s armband, I would not have believed it.

The result saw PSG open an 11-point lead at the top of Ligue 1 before nearest rivals Marseille play on Sunday, and before the Qatari-owned club travel to Bayern for the Champions League second leg on Wednesday.

PSG’s 1-0 trail from the first leg against the Bavarians and failure to progress to the quarter-finals in Europe will be a major dampener at the end of the season.

Hakimi watched from the stands

Injured Moroccan star Achraf Hakimi watched from the stands at the Parc des Princes a day after being charged with rape following allegations made by a 24-year-old woman.

Neymar is also a spectator and will not return for the game against Bayern, while centre-back Presnel Kimpembe will miss the rest of the season with an achilles injury.

Coach Christophe Galtier lost two more defenders to injury in the second half against Nantes, with captain Marquinhos and right-back Nordi Mukiele having to be dropped.

Before the match there was a minute’s applause for Just Fontaine, the former legendary French striker who scored 13 goals in the 1958 World Cup and died on Wednesday aged 89.

Fontaine also coached PSG, leading them to promotion to the top tier of French football in 1974.

The Parisians went ahead in the 12th minute, Messi turning in a cross from Nuno Mendes to score his 13th Ligue 1 goal of the season.

A hapless Hadjam own goal had PSG cruising, but Blas’ stunning strike from Gianluigi Donnarumma just after the half-hour mark brought Nantes back into the game and Cameroonian striker Ganago’s header made it 2-2 before the break.

PSG also took a two-goal lead in their last home game against Lille two weeks ago before recovering to win 4-3, and they repeated that feat here with Mbappe starring.

The assist was headed by Danilo to make it 3-2 before the hosts were awarded a penalty for a foul on Mukiele, only for a VAR review to determine that the contact had taken place outside the box.

It looks like Mbappe will have to wait for the record before scoring at the end with a finish on the turn.

Earlier, Lens missed the chance to move above Marseille into second place as they drew 1-1 at home to northern rivals Lille, where Canadian star Jonathan David grabbed the equaliser.

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