The last scene was so suitable that for a minute you asked yourself if Kylian Mbappé had actually done it purposefully. He was on the cusp of Paris Saint-Germain winning the Champions League. Once again, the dreams of European glory that had actually driven the club for more than a decade were dashed.

Suddenly, there he was, scoring a goal. The lightbulb moment of the best player in the world and a symbol of his homeland who has come to symbolize PSG’s ambition, ability, excess and arrogance was just around the corner. And then, with Dortmund’s defiant backline trailing helplessly in his furious wake, Mbappe slipped on his feet.

No tackles, no fouls, no interventions. He just fell down. He would not have achieved his goal. He wouldn’t be a hero. But at least he offers a perfect allegory, not only for the seven years he spent at his hometown club, but also for the gorgeous, transformative, yet deeply flawed project he came to represent. was.

It remains to be seen whether that will be Mbappé’s last act as a PSG player. He has not started a Ligue 1 game for over a month and announced on Friday: he will leave the club In summer. Even if he makes his last cameo appearance, Tuesday night will definitely be his last meaningful appearance.

Luis Enrique’s side wrapped up the Ligue 1 title a while ago, despite an atmosphere of inconvenience and apologetics throughout the proceedings. The next few weeks will be just an administrative necessity, followed by a short period of downtime. summer international business. At some point during that time, Mbappé will announce a new club, perhaps Real Madrid, and PSG will be left with only memories.

It’s even harder to determine what to document. Indeed, Mbappé has scored a lot of goals during his time in Paris, with his latest count of 255 goals in 306 games. He has also accumulated trophies: 6 French titles, 3 French Cups, 2 French League Cups and other individual awards. He became rich beyond anyone’s imagination. His prominence also gave him some political power. He often has dinner with the French president at the Elysée Palace. Rayvin Kurzawa.

But it’s hard to avoid the suspicion that Mbappé’s seven seasons in Paris will become defined more by his absence than his presence. He was brought to Paris in the spring, just like Neymar before him and Lionel Messi after him. His achievements were to be built on the Champions League last, which PSG values ​​above all else.

His return to football was impressive on the surface: he scored 20 goals on football’s greatest stage. However, this number requires a little background.

Mbappé scored six goals in a deluge en route to the semi-finals in 2021 and has scored five more in this year’s adventure. Often he turned out to be a peripheral figure. (The contrast with international football is apt and stark: by the age of 24, Mbappé had dominated two World Cup finals.)

The same goes for his team. P