In Wednesday night's marquee Champions League encounter between Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich, filled to the brim with bonafide superstars, it was one 18-year-old who shone brightest amongst Europe's elite in Les Parisiens' 3-0 win.

Kylian Mbappe -- labelled overrated despite 26 goals for Moncao last season, including six in the Champions League, and overpriced after PSG inserted a 180-million-euro buyout deal after taking him on loan -- proved that he was well on way to being worth every penny as he flummoxed the Bavarians', staking a claim to the throne at the Parc des Princes with an incredible display.

None of the other players -- including Neymar, Edinson Cavani, Marco Verrati on his side or Robert Lewandowski, Thomas Mueller, James Rodriguez on the other -- could compare to the Frenchman on the night as he used his electric pace and dazzling feet to leave Bayern reeling.

After Neymar had swept through Bayern's defence to set up Dani Alves for the first goal, it was almost the Mbappe show. With his Brazilian teammate running the show just behind of the forwards, Mbappe looked consistently dangerous as he found space and burst through.

It was one of those runs that led to PSG's second, as Mbappe ghosted into the box between Javi Martinez and Niklas Sule, before turning on a dime and waiting that vital second before teeing-up Cavani, who curled his shot into the back of the net.

The third was even better. As Alves exploded through the pitch, Mbappe made his run from the right wing. However, where most youngsters would have let the occasion or excitement get to their heads, Mbappe showed the awareness of a seasoned veteran as he held his run just before falling offside.

Once the pass came, he put his lightning feet to work once again and left David Alaba -- often named among the best full-backs in the game -- for dead with the most well-disguised ball-roll in recent memory. Although the final ball then was lacking, the chaos he initiated in the box allowed Neymar to rush in and poke home from close range.

One of the people who noticed the youngster's immense maturity was teammate Neymar.

"Mbappe, I have the impression that he is already 30 years old," Neymar said. "He is so mature and so complete. He's a pain for the defenders and he'll be in the race for the Ballon d'Or."

Former England captain Rio Ferdinand was effusive in praise, saying: "It's too much. It's illegal, really, what he's doing. It shouldn't be allowed."

Teammate Marco Verratti also waxed lyrical about his teammate, also pointing to his maturity and unselfish demeanour.

“I think Kylian deserves all of this [praise], because he's a very good boy, on and off the field," Verratti said. "He works a lot. On the field, he only makes choices that are for the team, never just for him. He's a player with a future. His was a complete performance."

However, despite all the rave reviews he had garnered, the Frenchman did not lose his composure and buy into the hype, not even after he received a standing ovation in the French capital. Instead, he summed up the day with a statement impossible to disagree with.

"The story is only just beginning."