Christophe Galtier confirmed that Kylian Mbappe is Paris Saint-Germain’s new vice-captain after his five-goal showing in the French Cup.
In the absence of regular captain Marquinhos, along with Presnel Kimpembe and Marco Verratti who are usually second and third in the hierarchy Mbappe was given the armband and embraced the extra responsibility. However, Galtier clarified the forward has been the vice-captain since the summer and hence it was natural for the 24-year-old to lead in the absence of Marquinhos.
“We decided at the start of the season that Kylian Mbappé should be the second captain. He deserves to have this armband when Marquinhos is absent.”
Galtier added on Mbappe’s five-star display: “Kylian Mbappe’s a goalscorer, he’s obsessed with goals and attacking. I’m not going to say he’s going to gain confidence [from scoring five goals], but he’s up to his standard. It was important for him and Neymar to play the full game. They combined a lot and looked for each other a lot. It was good for them.”
Mbappe was rather measured in his response after becoming the first player in the history of PSG to score five times in a competitive match. He stressed that the Ligue 1 champions had respect for their lower division opponents which helped them to put in a professional performance. “We’re happy, we came to qualify and respect this team,” he said.