Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe each scored two goals, and Neymar added another as Paris Saint-Germain beat Maccabi Haifa 7-2 at Parc des Princes on Tuesday to qualify for the Champions League round of 16.
Each of the star attacking trio scored a goal that put the hosts 3-0 up in just 35 minutes. Messi then made another glorious finish just before the break to complete a stunning halftime offensive show.
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There was little slowdown in the second half as Mbappe curled up in the second half before Maccabi’s Sean Goldberg’s own goal and was replaced by Carlos Soler’s seventh goal.
Helping also goals from Neymar and Soler, Messi has scored 11 goals and 12 assists in all competitions for PSG this season, already capturing his overall goal in his disappointing first season in the French capital.
Messi, Mbappe and Neymar also scored in the reverse fixture in a 3-1 win by PSG in Israel last month. An “MNM” member from last season had scored PSG’s last 19 Champions League goals before Goldberg’s own goal on Tuesday.
“I saw the players having fun and that’s very important,” said PSG coach Christophe Galtier of the 4-3-3 system he used. I had to think about how our fantastic front three players could express themselves in the best possible way and the system could be crucial.
“It’s fun to train them, to see them play every day. For a coach, it’s heaven.”
On the other hand, there were some brief signs of vulnerability on the defense, with Maccabi Haifa defender Abdoulaye Seck finding the net with two set-pieces headshots.
Still, the victory was never in doubt, leaving PSG to clinch a substitute in the Champions League knockout stage.
The Galtier side are also on par with qualified Benfica at 11 points but now have a comfortable advantage in goal difference.
PSG will head to Juventus in the final round of their group fixtures next week and know they only need to match Benfica’s away result against Maccabi Haifa to claim the top spot in the group.
Despite their heavy defeats, Maccabi remains on the three-point level with Juve and will enter their final game still hoping to find a place in the Europa League.
It took PSG a while to find their offensive rhythm on Tuesday, but once they did, they were devastating.
Messi rolled the ball in the 19th minute with a silky opening goal from the outside of his left foot with Mbappe playing on the left flank.
Mbappe’s opening was equally classy, with the French forward bending his right foot past Maccabi goalkeeper Josh Cohen, who couldn’t fault any of PSG’s goals in the 32nd minute.
Three minutes later, things started to get ugly for Maccabi when Mbappe and Messi teamed up to play for Neymar and the Brazilian’s shot went off the post.
PSG closed defensively to allow an unmarked Seck from Ömer Atzili’s free kick to head off, but Messi then exchanged a pass with Neymar and made the half 4-1 before he dropped his shoulder and took a corner with his left foot. .
Maccabi was actually the boss in the 10th minute of the second half, and as PSG managed to clear a corner, Seck Gianluigi took a header over Donnarumma and into the net.
Visiting fans celebrated with joy, but PSG later changed gears to riot.
In the 64th minute, Mbappe received a diagonal pass from Achraf Hakimi and deftly tapped before he found the far corner. As Maccabi eventually lost his temper, Neymar’s dribble and low mid ended with Goldberg scoring an own goal.
Rejected by the Champions League record-breaking ninth hat-trick crossbar, Messi then tasked Soler to complete the score with a low shot.
“We caught Paris on a good day. The smallest shift of concentration against such players and they can score a goal or have a big chance,” said Maccabi defender Dylan Batubinsika.
“We managed to score two goals today, which is a positive thing and we can still be third in the group.”
Information from Reuters is used in this report.
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