Mbappe nets 21st league goal as PSG wins 4-1 at Strasbourg

<p>PARIS &mdash; Kylian Mbappe struck his league-leading 21st goal of the season as defending champion Paris Saint-Germain won 4-1 at Strasbourg to stay three points behind leader Lille on Saturday.</p>
<p>Coach Mauricio Pochettino picked Mbappe even though PSG has a big game coming up against Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Tuesday, and the jet-heeled forward put PSG ahead in the 15th minute.</p>
<p>Mbappe latched onto a pass, cut inside a defender and slotted the ball through the legs of goalkeeper Matz Sels, who could have done better.</p>
<p>Moments earlier, Strasbourg midfielder Adrien Thomasson hit the post with a fine shot from just outside the penalty area, with goalkeeper Keylor Navas well beaten.</p>
<p>PSG took control after Mbappe’s goal.</p>
<p>Sels was beaten again in the 26th when winger Pablo Sarabia beat a defender on the edge of the area and drilled a low shot into the bottom corner, and Mbappe set up striker Moise Kean for a clinical finish just before the break.</p>
<p>Pochettino replaced Navas at halftime with Sergio Rico as a precautionary measure, ahead of the quarterfinal return leg against Bayern with PSG leading 3-2.</p>
<p>Rico was well beaten by 19-year-old striker Moise Sahi’s first league goal as he clipped an excellent half-volley into the top corner from a cross in the 62nd.</p>
<p>Pochettino <a href="https://apnews.com/article/ligue-1-mauricio-pochettino-champions-league-lille-70dbdb973b941d845763af5e62452694">took the risk of keeping Mbappe on until the 88th minute</a>, even though the match already looked won after Leandro Paredes hit a fine free kick 10 minutes earlier for 4-1.</p>
<p>Later Saturday, Marseille coach Jorge Sampaoli chased a fourth win in five games since taking charge when his side visited Montpellier.</p>
<p>Monaco and Lyon play their games on Sunday, with third-place Monaco hosting last-placed Dijon, and fourth-place Lyon facing midtable Angers.</p>
<p>Coach Niko Kovac’s Monaco side is in fine form, having lost just once in the last 19 games.</p>
<p>Lille’s defense held firm Friday <a href="https://apnews.com/article/aaron-leya-zeki-celik-lille-christophe-galtier-burak-yilmaz-4bff1f5cc2118ce8647a417533b04e1b">in a 2-0 win at Metz</a>.</p>
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