All eyes were on Kylian Mbappe as he played his first match at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium wearing the iconic white shirt of Real Madrid. Thanks to Real Valladolid’s tight marking, the Frenchman struggled to stretch his legs and regularly test the visiting goalkeeper, Karl Hein. Fortunately for Los Blancos, Mbappe’s tepid performance did not restrict them, as they produced a solid performance in the second half to seal a comfortable 3-0 win in La Liga Gameweek 2 on Sunday, August 25.
Valverde, Diaz, and Endrick Propel Real Madrid To First La Liga Win Of The Season
With Jude Bellingham out with a hamstring injury, Arda Guler got to head the creative department on Sunday. Flanked by Rodrygo on the left and Vinicius Jr. on the right, the Turk tried to slide passes into dangerous channels and let the wingers do what they do best. However, Valladolid read his intentions more often than not and blocked his passes from reaching their intended targets. While Guler was feeling out Valladolid, Rudiger created Los Blancos’ first opportunity of the night in the ninth minute. He delivered an inch-perfect long ball from deep, which Mbappe hit first time on the volley. Hein, however, rose to the challenge and made a superb stop to parry it behind for a corner. Apart from the Mbappe effort, Real Madrid could not ask many questions of Valladolid in the first half.
Five minutes into the second 45, Fede Valverde found the back of the net, that, too, from a long-range free kick. The new Real Madrid No. 8 dispatched a thunderous low strike, and it pierced a wall of Valladolid defenders to nestle into the back of the net. Valladolid tightened the defense after the goal and created a few opportunities to equalize, but the Real Madrid defense ensured the hosts were not embarrassed at home. In the 88th minute, substitute Brahim Diaz controlled Eder Militao’s world-class long ball from deep and chipped the goalkeeper to make it 2-0. Then, six minutes into injury time, debutant Endrick found the netting with a smashing strike, sealing a 3-0 victory for the All-Whites.
A Look at Kylian Mbappe’s Game In Numbers
The former Paris Saint-Germain did not have a poor game by any means. However, it was far from what we had come to expect from him. Not only did he struggle to operate through the middle, but his ball control was also not up to the mark. Throughout the game, Mbappe had four shots, three of which were on target. He completed 24 passes with an impressive 92% accuracy but could not create any chances for his teammates. Mbappe pulled off four dribbles, was dispossessed twice, and won four of seven ground duels. All in all, it was a mixed bag for the 25-year-old.
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