Mbappé Treble Takes Real Home

Mbappé scored in the fourth, 33rd and 61st minutes to take Real Madrid to a 3-1 win over Manchester City in Madrid

- Agencies

MADRID: Kylian Mbappé's hat-trick against Manchester City propelled Real Madrid into the Champions League last 16 on Wednesday and him to a new personal high with Los Blancos.

This was the kind of night the French superstar dreamed of, both as a boy in his bedroom surrounded by Cristiano Ronaldo posters and in his past few seasons at Paris Saint-Germain.

As PSG came up short year after year in Europe, Mbappé watched on as Madrid extended their power over the European game, reaching a record 15 European Cup triumphs.

With Madrid's poor start to the current campaign — in part due to Mbappé's teething problems — leaving the Spanish and European champions in the play-off round against City, they needed the forward to deliver.

With three lethal finishes he did just that to help Carlo Ancelotti's rampant Madrid seal a 3-1 win on the night and 6-3 aggregate triumph.

"This is the type of game we want to play," said Mbappé.

"People told me about these nights and now I can see it with my own eyes and I want to live through many more of them."

After years of speculation and failed attempts to sign him, Mbappé finally arrived in the Spanish capital last summer.

However, his first few months brought problems, an apparent lack of confidence and erratic form.