Kylian Mbappe – Coming into his own at Real Madrid after a slow start

Real Madrid faced off against Barcelona last Sunday in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, with the Spanish capital club seeking their third Supercopa de España title in four years.

Despite taking an early lead, Real proceeded to concede five straight goals and fall to a 5-2 defeat in the final.

It was yet another humbling Clásico defeat for Los Blancos, who lost 4-0 to Barcelona in their previous encounter in October, and a missed opportunity for Real to string together their sixth consecutive victory.

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti, a man who usually only reaches his boiling point when he’s cooking spaghetti, decided to abandon his stoic, reserved comments and instead lambaste his team’s performance, stating “we didn’t play football.”

However, he did single out one player for praise in his post-match press conference.

“I take nothing away from this match, except for the game [Kylian] Mbappé played. It was a very good performance from him, with good plays, and he scored the goal… As for the rest, we need to forget about it and move forward.”

Mbappé opened the scoring after five minutes, receiving the ball at the halfway line, sprinting forward, and finding himself 1v1 with Barcelona defender Alejandro Balde. He froze up his man, bewildered Balde with a series of stepovers, and slalomed past his opponent before carving out a shot into the back of the net.

It was the third straight final that he scored in for Real Madrid, having previously done so in the UEFA Super Cup vs. Atalanta and the FIFA Intercontinental Cup vs. Pachuca.

Huge expectations, slow start

Since breaking onto the scene as a teenager for Monaco, Mbappé has been perpetually linked with a transfer to Real Madrid.

Even after Paris Saint-Germain pried him away from the principality in 2017, Real did not relinquish their interest and continued to pursue the French superstar until finally signing him on a five-year contract in June 2024.

Expectations were higher than ever, with 80,000+ people turning up at his presentation at the Santiago Bernabéu – the same amount that came for Cristiano Ronaldo’s presentation in 2009.

And whilst PSG did not receive a transfer fee for Mbappé, Real were forced to fork out a €150 million signing bonus as well as a reported annual wage of €36 million.

Mbappé’s transition to life in Madrid was far from seamless – he was nullified in his first three league matches, including two draws at Mallorca and Las Palmas.

However, he was able to turn things around and open his LaLiga account in September, bagging a brace in a 2-0 win vs. Real Betis, a goal in a 2-0 win at Real Sociedad, and a goal in a 3-1 win vs. Stuttgart, before registering a goal and an assist in a comeback 4-1 victory vs. Espanyol.

“Kylian Mbappé and Vinícius Júnior are the toughest players I’ve played against in my entire career,” stated Espanyol defender Marash Kumbulla (h/t RG), a player who has gone up against the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Zlatan Ibrahimović, and Romelu Lukaku.

“When you play against them in real life, you understand why they are so good – they’re at another level.”

Mbappé made it five straight matches with a goal after doubling their lead in a 3-2 win vs. Alavés, before being kept under wraps in their following two games vs. Lille and Villarreal.

He returned to the score sheet on October 19 vs Celta Vigo, taking two touches to turn around and steady himself before firing a rocket into the left corner.

It seemed to be the finish of a man who had finally arrived in Spain, and who was in the process of leaving the rest of La Liga’s 19 defences in his dust.

Mbappe goes missing

Not so fast. Mbappé struggled in the following month and failed to score in his next four fixtures until eventually opening the scoring in a 3-0 win at newly promoted Leganés.

He was caught napping in various defeats vs. Barcelona, Milan and Liverpool, the latter of which saw him shoot a tepid penalty into the hands of Caoimhin Kelleher in a 2-0 loss.

Mbappé was able to bounce back with a goal vs. Getafe in the following match, before dropping yet another listless display in a 2-1 defeat at Athletic Club where, once again, he had a penalty saved.

Madridistas throughout the globe searched for an explanation. Was Ancelotti struggling to balance his various superstars in Madrid’s attack? Was the lack of Toni Kroos in midfield taking a toll on the team’s creativity in possession?

Was Mbappé failing to make the adjustment from French football to Spanish football? Was he struggling to deal with the increased pressure from the media and the fanbase? Was Mbappé’s preference to play in the left half-spaces incompatible with Vinícius’ tendency to hug the left touchline?

Whatever it was, it wasn’t good enough, and Mbappé himself recognized as much. And after that disastrous display in the Basque Country, he’s seemingly managed to turn a corner in his performances.

“The game in Bilbao was good for me” said Mbappé after a Man-of-the-Match display vs Sevilla.

“I hit rock-bottom; I missed a penalty. It was the moment to realise that I have to give my all for this shirt and play with more personality. I can do a lot more. I know that I have a lot more in my legs. In the last few games I’ve played better.”

The resurgence

It didn’t take long for him to bounce back, putting the finishing touches on a 3-0 thrashing of Girona before breaking the deadlock early on in their 3-2 win at Atalanta in the UEFA Champions League.

The 2018 FIFA World Cup winner bagged a goal and an assist in his next two matches vs. Pachuca and Sevilla, before being held scoreless in his first three matches of 2025 vs. Valencia, Minera, and Mallorca.

It seems the 26-year-old has finally put his early struggles past him and is becoming a vital cog in Real’s attack, although there’s still plenty of room for improvement.

The former PSG superstar has scored 10 league goals from 12.14 Expected Goals – three of those goals coming from the penalty spot – whilst he also leads the Spanish top-flight in shots per game (4.4) and shots on target per game (2.2).

Only Robert Lewandowski (16) and Raphinha (11) have scored more than him in LaLiga, whilst only Lewandowski (14) has missed as many big chances as him.

With a newfound confidence and a willingness to take on audacious attempts, there’s reason to believe that Mbappé can build on his recent form and match the caliber of performances we witnessed in Paris.

“We were definitely seeing Mbappé’s cousin at Real Madrid until the last few weeks, when the real Mbappé that Real signed is finally appearing,” said Salva R. Moya, the director of the Spanish television network Canal Sur Almería.

“He was unrecognizable…but just like everyone, he needed a period of adaptation.”

“He was perhaps the only positive vs. Barcelona, where he demonstrated that he can be dangerous anywhere in the attack.

“He has that stride, that change of pace to leave defenders in his wake. He always looks to make runs in behind and receive in space, always looks for the runs to win the ball in space…he can perfectly adapt to any of the attacking positions.”

Mbappé is finally showing the real Mbappé, but he’s also demonstrating that he can share the spotlight with his fellow Galácticos and adapt to a position where he’s less comfortable in, such as the center forward role.

The 26-year-old is not solely focused on scoring the most goals – the only thing he cares about is the end result. We saw this during their Clásico defeat, when Mbappé burst in behind the defence, perfectly timing his last-man run, and taking a touch past Barcelona goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny, forcing the Polish goalkeeper to trip him up and get sent off.

The superstar forward followed that up with a goal in the 5-2 Copa del Rey win over Celta Vigo during the week.

Rather than simply demanding the ball to his feet and going from there, Mbappé is proving that he has what it takes to combine his anticipation, physical prowess, and speed, and make those selfless runs on the edge of the defence.

The Real Madrid megastar is finally delivering on a consistent basis for the reigning Spanish and European champions, and he’ll be looking to lead Real to victory on Sunday in La Liga against Las Palmas.