Paris Saint-Germain were deservedly beaten by Bayern Munich in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Tuesday, but Kylian Mbappe's cameo on his return from injury gives them reason to believe they can still prevent another premature exit from Europe's elite club competition.
Mbappe did not look like a player who had been brought back much earlier than expected following a thigh injury as his electrifying pace caused panic in the Bayern defence when he came on for the final half-hour.
The France superstar could not inspire a comeback as Bayern left the Parc des Princes with a 1-0 win, but only a brave Yann Sommer save and then a marginal offside call denied him an equaliser. "We only lost 1-0, there are no more away goals, and if we play our attacking game, cause them problems and score once, we'll be level," Mbappe said as he looked ahead to the return leg in Germany on March 8. "We are not beaten, not at all.
We still have every chance." However, what Tuesday's game confirmed was the extent to which PSG are dependent on Mbappe, despite the presence of Lionel Messi and Neymar in their attack as well.