PSG's Kylian Mbappe Talks Neymar Absence Ahead of Clash with Manchester United

Kylian Mbappe hopes Paris Saint-Germain have learned a lesson in how to cope without Neymar ahead of their UEFA Champions League round-of-16 clash with Manchester United after losing their star at the same stage last year.

PSG have confirmed the Brazil international will be sidelined for 10 weeks with a fractured metatarsal and will miss both legs of the last-16 meeting with United.

The first leg at Old Trafford takes place on February 12, and Mbappe, 20, addressed concerns after PSG lost their first league match of the season 2-1 at Lyon on Sunday:

"We have not realised our many opportunities. I'm not worried about the Champions League match. We must take it match by match and wait for the Champions League. 

"It feels good to play matches like that. Facing teams that play is the best way to prepare for the upcoming deadlines. It's up to us to win. 

"The goal was to remain undefeated and we will try not to lose again by the end of the season. It's complicated, yes, to play without Neymar. You must accept it. Last season, he was also injured and it would be nice not to make the same mistakes, otherwise it would mean that we did not learn anything."

PSG lost 5-2 on aggregate to Real Madrid in the round of 16 last season, when a cracked metatarsal caused Neymar to miss the second leg of the tie, a 2-1 defeat at the Parc des Princes.

Head coach Thomas Tuchel is under pressure to advance PSG's European endeavours in his first season at the club, but ESPN FC illustrated how the French side have had issues getting far in the knockout stages:

Moussa Dembele and Nabil Fekir scored either side of half-time after Angel Di Maria had given PSG an early breakthrough at the Groupama Stadium on Sunday.

Ligue 1 writer Jeremy Smith touched on signs that the pressure on Tuchel is perhaps starting to tell, and he also questioned the squad's lack of depth in attack:

United have improved in all areas since Ole Gunnar Solskjaer took over as interim manager and beat Leicester City 1-0 on Sunday to go a 10th game unbeaten since he succeeded Jose Mourinho.

Despite his age, a large responsibility will fall on Mbappe to make the difference for PSG in their Champions League showdown. Edinson Cavani recently netted twice in a 4-1 defeat of Rennes, and the 2018 FIFA World Cup winner also got on the scoresheet, via BT Sport (UK only):

Mbappe has 22 goals and 12 assists in 25 appearances across all competitions this term, with three of those strikes coming from his six outings in Europe.

The Red Devils may not pose quite the same threat as last season's Real Madrid, who went on to win a third successive Champions League under Zinedine Zidane, but losing Neymar for both legs is a major blow.

United kept a fourth clean sheet in 10 games when they beat Leicester on Sunday, but holding back the PSG tide even without Neymar will be a tall order for Solskjaer's men.