Mauricio Pochettino hailed Neymar Jr. and Kylian Mbappé after Paris Saint-Germain’s two superstar forwards found the net in Friday’s demolition of Montpellier Hérault SC at the Parc des Princes.
“It is an important win. It keeps our run going and will help build confidence,” said Pochettino of PSG’s 4-0 victory on the night he returned to the dugout after a positive coronavirus test forced him to sit out last week’s defeat of Angers SCO.
Mbappé scored twice while Neymar - on his 100th appearance for the club - and Mauro Icardi also found the net as the Quatre Fantastiques were reunited and tore the opposition to shreds. Angel di Maria may not have scored but he did provide the assist for Mbappé’s opener.
“With the squad we have we have so many options. I am really satisfied with them but we still need to see which is the very best combination,” said Pochettino, who has four wins and a draw from his five matches in charge.
'Commitment to the cause'
Mbappé’s goals took him to 14 for the season in Ligue 1, putting him clear at the top of the scorers’ charts. They were his first goals since Pochettino’s arrival and come after much discussion in recent days about the 22-year-old’s supposed loss of form. Meanwhile Neymar marked his 100th appearance for the club with his 81st goal.
“I was already pleased with how Mbappé was playing and now I am happy that he has scored. Confidence is vital for a striker,” said Pochettino.
“I was also pleased with Neymar and the way he tracked back. His commitment to the cause is important. It is vital in my eyes that we have a balanced team and the forwards play their part in that.”
Montpellier in a rut
For Montpellier this was a seventh straight match without a win, and they never really stood a chance after the sending-off of goalkeeper Jonas Omlin in the 16th minute for bringing down Mbappé outside his box.
Beleaguered Montpellier coach Michel Der Zakarian admitted: “It is hard enough against PSG when it’s 11 against 11, so when you find yourselves a man down after 19 minutes…We were actually down to nine men when we conceded the opening goal because Florent Mollet injured his ankle and we were trying to get Joris Chotard ready to come on."
He added: “We did what we could but we need to get back to winning ways. That is seven matches now in which we have had some good performances but also some awful periods. We are making too many individual defensive errors that are costing us.”
>> MATCH REPORT: Neymar marks century as PSG thump Montpellier
