Kylian Mbappe's injury "does not seem very serious", Paris Saint-Germain head coach Christophe Galtier has revealed after the forward limped off against Montpellier.
With Neymar already ruled out of the Ligue 1 match because of muscle fatigue, Mbappe was forced off in the 21st minute of PSG's 3-1 victory on Tuesday and clutched his hamstring as he went straight down the tunnel.
The forward's injury came after he had missed a penalty, as well as its retake for a Montpellier encroachment, though his team went on to win the game through goals from Lionel Messi, Fabian Ruiz and 16-year-old Warren Zaire-Emery.
But after Sergio Ramos also came off with injury in the first half, there was much concern after the game over some players' availabilities with less than two weeks until the first leg of PSG's Champions League last-16 tie with Bayern Munich.
Galtier eased fears over the injuries to Mbappe and Ramos, though, telling reporters at his post-match news conference: "It doesn't seem very serious, for one as for the other.
"We will see. Obviously they are two important players. On what we saw at half-time and what we said to each other, there is not too much worry.
"Kylian took a blow behind the knee and on the muscle. Is it a contusion, a hematoma. We don't know yet. With the sequence of matches, we prefer not to take any risks.
"Sergio, when falling, hurt his adductor. We think it's not serious. He preferred to come off and not take any risks regarding the discomfort."
Despite PSG winning Ligue 1 last season, head coach Mauricio Pochettino was relieved of his duties after failing to deliver the club's first Champions League.
Galtier is bidding to avoid the same fate, though he says he expected the pressure before he came into the job.
"Yes, automatically when you sign for PSG, there is an obligation to win," he said.
"The Champions League requires you to be ready. We have players coming back, and we've just had a World Cup. I knew before coming that there was pressure."
PSG missed out on a deadline day move for Chelsea's Hakim Ziyech due to the Premier League club reportedly making an error with the necessary paperwork.
When he was asked whether he was disappointed not to have brought Ziyech in, Galtier responded: "You know it. We wanted to replace the departure of Pablo Sarabia.
"Unfortunately, it didn't happen but it's the quirks of the transfer window – you have to accept it."
Al-Nassr 3-1 Al-Khaleej: Ronaldo nets twice and passes up penalty in cup semi-final
Cristiano Ronaldo returned to the scoresheet with two goals as Al-Nassr beat Al-Khaleej 3-1 to reach the final of the King Cup of Champions on Wednesday.
Ronaldo scored either side of half-time as Al-Nassr teed up a final clash with Saudi Pro League leaders Al-Hilal, who beat Al-Ittihad 2-1 in the other semi-final on Tuesday.
The former Real Madrid and Manchester United star took advantage of an error from opposing goalkeeper Ibrahim Sehic to open the scoring 17 minutes in, then tapped home at the second attempt to make it a double shortly before the hour mark.
That goal could have made it a hat-trick for the Portugal star, but he passed up the chance to take a first-half penalty after Ivo Rodrigues handled in the area, Sadio Mane instead stepping up to blast his kick into the top corner.
Fawaz Al Terais was on target late on for Al-Khaleej, but that proved a mere consolation in a one-sided affair which saw Al-Nassr rack up 21 shots and 3.78 expected goals (xG), with their opponents managing just nine shots totalling 1.37 xG.
Data Debrief: Ronaldo's mini drought over
Ronaldo was frustrated against Al-Khaleej in the Saudi Pro League on Saturday, but he was back on song against the same opponents on Wednesday to end his mini drought of two games.
While Ronaldo's 43 touches were the fewest of any outfielder to start for Al-Nassr, he managed seven shots, five shots from inside the area and four dribbles – all game-high figures.
Sancho outshines Mbappe as Dortmund seize initiative against PSG
Manchester United loanee Jadon Sancho issued a reminder of his star quality as Borussia Dortmund beat Paris Saint-Germain 1-0 in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final tie on Wednesday.
Niclas Fullkrug scored the winner after 36 minutes, taking in Nico Schlotterbeck's floated pass before driving a low shot beyond PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma.
Fullkrug has now been involved in six Champions League goals this season (three goals, three assists), the joint-most by a German player in their debut campaign in the competition, alongside BVB team-mate Marco Reus in 2012-13 (four goals, two assists).
The star of the show, however, was undoubtedly Sancho.
He tormented Nuno Mendes throughout a lively performance, creating three chances for his team-mates – a game-high tally alongside Julian Brandt, Kylian Mbappe and Achraf Hakimi.
Sancho had completed seven dribbles by the halfway point, more than he managed in any full game for the Red Devils.
By full-time, that number had crept up to 12, the most by any player in a Champions League semi-final since Lionel Messi completed 16 for Barcelona against United in April 2008, and the most on record by an Englishman at any stage of the competition (since 2003-04).
Sancho even outshone Mbappe, who struck the far post with a curling effort early in the second half but was limited to just three shots totalling 0.17 expected goals (xG).
PSG did have their chances, though, with their total of 14 shots their most without scoring in any Champions League game since the second leg of their 2020-21 semi-final against Manchester City (also 14), when they were beaten 2-0 and eliminated from the competition.
Dortmund are now unbeaten in 11 straight Champions League home games, winning seven and drawing four.
It's their longest ever such streak at Signal Iduna Park, and they have also won four straight knockout games on their own turf for the first time in their Champions League history.
While Dortmund have a valuable lead to protect in Paris next Tuesday, Edin Terzic will be expecting a strong reaction from PSG.
The Ligue 1 champions have progressed from two of their last four Champions League knockout ties when losing the first leg, with the first of those successes coming against Dortmund in the last 16 in 2019-20 (1-2 away, 2-0 at home).
Borussia Dortmund 1-0 Paris Saint-Germain: Fullkrug hands hosts first-leg win
Niclas Fullkrug fired home a first-half winner as Borussia Dortmund claimed a 1-0 victory over Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final tie in Germany.
Nico Schlotterbeck floated a pass into Fullkrug's path and the Germany international brought the ball under his spell with a wonderful touch before drilling a low shot past Gianluigi Donnarumma in the 36th minute.
PSG, on the back foot for much of the first half, improved after the break and struck the woodwork twice in a matter of moments just after the restart.
Kylian Mbappe curled an effort against the right-hand post before Achraf Hakimi scuffed a shot against the other upright on the rebound as Edin Terzic's side escaped with a first-leg lead.
The teams will meet again at the Parc des Princes next Tuesday, with the winners of the tie facing either Bayern Munich or Real Madrid – who drew 2-2 in their first leg on Tuesday – in the final at Wembley Stadium.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
