Kylian Mbappé arrived at Real Madrid with the highest expectations, but the Frenchman’s early struggles in La Liga marred his blockbuster transfer and his new club’s title defence.
Real Madrid added their 15th Champions League title and 36th La Liga title to their trophy cabinet at the end of the 2023/24 season. Carlo Ancelotti’s team were already at the top of Spain and Europe, but Los Blancos wanted more: two days after beating Borussia Dortmund at Wembley, the club welcomed Mbappé on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain.
Mbappé’s arrival at Real Madrid seemed inevitable, especially after Paris Saint-Germain failed to win the Champions League again. After a 44-goal season for the Ligue 1 winners, the 25-year-old seemed to fit perfectly into a Real Madrid team that struggled to score goals at times last year.
The French international got his Real Madrid career off to a dream start, scoring against Atalanta in the UEFA Super Cup, a debut that ended with him winning the trophy he never managed to win during his years at PSG.
Mbappé’s performance in the UEFA Super Cup drew even more attention to his La Liga debut just four days later. However, the striker had a disappointing 90 minutes, managing just two shots on goal against a team that finished 15th last season. Real Madrid could only manage a 1-1 draw and returned home two points behind Barcelona.
Los Blancos hit back with a 3-0 win against Real Valladolid, but Mbappé again failed to get on the scoresheet.
Even when Ancelotti changed the starting line-up against Las Palmas, preferring Brahim Diaz and Luka Modric, his side could not do much in the final third, securing just a point in another 1-1 draw. Mbappé scored no goals or created any chances, and he lost half of his tackles.
After three matchdays of the 2024–25 La Liga season, Real Madrid were four points behind Barcelona, giving their rivals quite a lead so early in the season. Even more notable was Mbappé’s run of poor performances against inferior teams despite Ancelotti’s changes to personnel and lineup.
The Frenchman finally scored his first La Liga goal against Real Betis after a brilliant backheel from Fede Valverde and quickly doubled his tally after converting a penalty. The promised superstar finally appeared at the packed Santiago Bernabéu.
Mbappé’s slow start hasn’t helped the reigning La Liga champions, however. Barcelona’s young team continues to impress under Hansi Flick and the Catalans don’t look like a team that can drop points any time soon.
The good news for the Madridistas is that the three superstars can get their club’s title defense back on track as long as Mbappé, Vinicius Júnior and Rodrygo continue to work on their chemistry in the top group.
