PARIS: Brazilian star Neymar struck a hat-trick and his partner Kylian Mbappe added two to help Paris Saint-Germain finish top in Champions League Group H after an overwhelming 5-1 victory over Istanbul Basaksehir at Parc des Princes in their latest encounter.
The match, which started on Tuesday, had been halted after 14 minutes when both sides walked off amid alleged racist abuse from fourth official Sebastian Coltescu to Basaksehir coach Pierre Webo, reports Xinhua news agency.
Players from both sides took a knee around the centre circle before the restart on Wednesday. Webo, who was shown a red card on Tuesday, was allowed to take his place on the away bench as his red card was suspended while UEFA is investigating the incident.
“We are tired, we don’t want to go through this again,” said Mbappe, who overtook Barcelona’s Lionel Messi to become the youngest player to reach 20 Champions League goals after a brace in the match.
“Of course, I am proud of what was done. We were not disappointed not to play. We made that decision. We were proud,” the French international added. “A lot of things were said but, in fact, there’s nothing better than actions.”
