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The reason why Mbappé will take penalties over Messi and Neymar is revealed

Kylian Mbappé is above Neymar and Messi, or so thinks the PSG coach. Galtier has reaffirmed the Frenchman as PSG's first-choice penalty taker for this season.

By William Estrella

Kylian Mbappé is above Neymar and Messi, or so thinks the PSG coach. Galtier has reaffirmed the Frenchman as PSG's first-choice penalty taker for this season.
Kylian Mbappé is above Neymar and Messi, or so thinks the PSG coach. Galtier has reaffirmed the Frenchman as PSG's first-choice penalty taker for this season.

Christophe Galtier has been all his career a players' coach, looking to have the best possible environment in the locker room.  Throughout his career he has sought to be a communicative manager and at both Lille and Nice he sought to be more than a coach to his players. PSG's new sporting director, Luis Campos, sought him out for the Parisian side believing in his ability to manage egos with a calm demeanor, something very similar to what Ancelotti does.

PSG is probably the club with the most stars of all European soccer, so egos are at their highest level. Galtier already had to deal with his first spat of the season on match day 2, with an argument between Neymar and Mbappé over a penalty kick that the Brazilian ended up taking and scoring. That caused a few hours of tension between the two, settled the next day with a meeting between the two strikers and their coach.

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The French press reported that the chapter was closed by Galtier before the match against Lille. The Parisians won 7-1 away and the French coach acknowledged before the match that the first penalty taker will be Kylian Mbappé.

Why is Mbappé awarded penalty duties?

The statements did not surprise the PSG squad, according to L'Équipe, after Galtier had already announced during the pre-season tour of Japan that Mbappé would be the first penalty taker, and Neymar the second. It appears this has nothing to do with ability, but with the massive renewal of Mbappé with PSG which granted him powers beyond the pitch, and placed him in a pedestal above all the other players.


William Estrella

William Estrella

I'm a Mexican sports journalist with more than 8 years of experience, especially in digital media. I cover breaking news and investigative articles on current soccer events worldwide. I currently write for El Futbolero USA. Previously, I worked as a radio announcer in my country, covering Mexican soccer.

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