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Neymar scored his second Champions League hat trick as Paris Saint-Germain rolled to a 6-1 victory over Red Star Belgrade in a Champions League group-stage game at the Parc des Princes yesterday.
PSG, who lost to Liverpool in added time in their opener two weeks ago, faced little resistance even though Red Star entered unbeaten in 19 games in all competitions this season.
Edinson Cavani, Angel Di Maria and Kylian Mbappe also scored for PSG, who claimed a 4-0 lead by half-time.
Neymar, who had a brace in the Ligue 1 win at Nice on Saturday, opened the scoring in the 20th minute with a free kick from 20 yards that curled around the left post.
He then doubled PSG’s lead in the 23rd from a volley by Mbappe into an open net, then finished off his hat trick with another free kick, scoring in the 81st minute into the top right corner from 25 yards.
The final goal, Neymar’s 10th of the season in all competitions, was also his 30th all-time in the Champions League, making him the fifth South American player to reach that mark. His previous Champions League hat trick was in December 2013, when he had three goals while playing for Barcelona against Celtic.
Cavani scored PSG’s third goal in the 37th minute, with his shot deflecting into the net off of Milos Degenek, and Di Maria scored five minutes, Mbappe also marked his 50th appearance with PSG with a goal in the 70th minute.
In another match, Weston McKennie’s late header gave Schalke a 1-0 win over Lokomotiv Moscow in the Champions League on Wednesday as the German team continued to recover from a poor start to the season.
Neither team had much cutting edge as chances were missed on a wet night in Moscow, but McKennie made the difference in the 88th minute when the 20-year-old U.S. midfielder leapt unmarked at the far post to head in Yevhen Konoplyanka’s corner.
[Daily Trust]
