Kylian Mbappe's brother Ethan made his debut for Paris Saint-Germain's first-team in a mid-season friendly against Paris FC on Friday.
The 15-year-old came on at half-time for Fabian Ruiz with PSG ahead by a goal at the break. Christophe Galtier made a number of changes at the interval but it didn't effect the outcome as PSG ran out 2-1 winners, with Mbappe playing a starring role during his time on the pitch.
With no Mbappe, Lionel Messi, Neymar and Marquinhos among others due to the World Cup, Galtier fielded a relatively inexperienced side. Sergio Ramos and Marco Veratti were the elder statesmen in the XI, with Hugo Ekitike, Renato Sanches and Sergio Rico also starting.
Nordi Mukiele gave PSG in the 16th minute with a terrific solo goal. The right-back played a terrific one-two with Ekitike before running through one-v-one with the goalkeeper. Mukiele kept his composure before slotting the ball into the corner of the net.
The game was played with two halves of 30 minutes, and it took PSG until the final seven minutes to double their lead through Ismael Gharbi. The teenager dazzled through the Paris FC back-four before tucking the ball into the corner - a strike of pure class.
Although Paris FC pulled one back late on, it proved to be too little too late as PSG continued their preparations for the Ligue 1 restart. PSG will also take on Quevilly-Rouen in a mid-season friendly on Wednesday - a week before they face Strasbourg in their first competitive game back.
But the headlines will be focused on Mbappe's debut at the tender age of 15, with the midfielder nine years younger than his brother. After the game, Mbappe posted on Instagram that he was “very excited to have made my debut in the pros”.
Mbappe, who joined the club in the same year as his brother, signed a new three-year contract with the Ligue 1 champions in June 2021 and made his debut for the France Under-16 side in November of that year. Meanwhile, Kylian is currently the joint top scorer at the World Cup, having scored five times in his six matches.
He will face up against Lionel Messi's Argentina, and the debate has started about who is the better player. "For me it’s Kylian," Aurelien Tchouameni admitted following France’s 2-0 win over Morocco in the semi final on Wednesday evening. "For me it’s Mbappe and I want him to prove that in the next game."
Antoine Griezmann added: "Any team with Messi in is a totally different proposition. We have seen practically all of their matches at this World Cup. We have seen Argentina play, we know how they play.
"They are a difficult team to play and they seem to be on top form. Of course, not only Messi, they have a strong side around him so we know it is going to be a tough game and they will have a lot of support in the crowd."
