Kingsley Coman scored the only goal of the game as Bayern Munich beat Paris Saint-Germain 1-0 in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Thursday, with substitute Kylian Mbappe denied a late equaliser by a marginal offside call. The unmarked Coman swept in an Alphonso Davies cross eight minutes into the second half at the Parc des Princes, just as Mbappe was preparing to enter the fray on his return from injury after PSG had appeared devoid of ideas without their top scorer.

Mbappe, and the entire stadium, thought he had equalised with eight minutes remaining when he turned in a Nuno Mendes cutback, but the goal was ruled out because the Portuguese full-back was just ahead of the last defender at the start of the move. Bayern finished the game with 10 men after Benjamin Pavard was sent off, but it was a frustrating ending for PSG.

The French giants looked much better in the latter stages with Mbappe on the field but also needed fine saves by Gianluigi Donnarumma to prevent a bigger deficit. PSG must hope they can turn the tie around in the second leg in Munich on March 8. “We are at a disadvantage but we saw that we were capable of causing them problems and now we just need to make sure all our players are in good health and we will go there to try to qualify,” Mbappe, who had another goal ruled out for a clear offside, said.

Coman, who started his career in Paris, did not celebrate his goal but it was a case of history repeating itself — he had been the matchwinner when Bayern beat the Qatar-owned club in the 2020 final in Lisbon to become European champions for the sixth time. “It was a bit strange. I grew up at this club, in this city, I was born here, so it was difficult to celebrate but at the end we are really pleased with the victory,” Coman said.

Credit : Independent News Pakistan-INP