Ethan Mbappé: Lille’s Bold Gamble Against Dortmund
Making his first-ever Champions League start for Lille at just 18 years old, Ethan Mbappé could not replicate his brother Kylian’s past success at Borussia Dortmund’s Westfalenstadion, where the PSG star shone eight years ago.
Lille coach Bruno Génésio pulled off a surprise by naming Ethan in the starting lineup just an hour before kickoff. The young midfielder replaced Dutch winger Mitchel Bakker, taking on the role of a right winger in the attack.
Génésio, 58, explained his decision: “Ethan played well in Paris (where we lost 4-1 to PSG on Saturday), and I also wanted speed and penetration in attack.”
He added: “We have a lot of issues with our forwards—some are still injured, and others are just coming back from injury. I considered Matías Fernández-Pardo and Rémy Cabella, but we wanted to exploit the depth and space behind Dortmund’s defense. I think Ethan played a very interesting 60 minutes.”
The Lille coach is known for his bold tactical experiments in this season’s Champions League campaign. His risk-taking has paid off, with Lille advancing directly to the Round of 16 by finishing seventh in the group stage standings.
Against Atlético Madrid, he fielded a very young squad that managed an impressive 3-1 victory at the Metropolitano Stadium.
Similarly, in Bologna, he achieved another strong result by playing 20-year-old Congolese playmaker Ngalaïl Mokao, leading Lille to a 2-1 win.
