A Kylian Mbappe brace helped Real Madrid secure maximum points. in their opening UCL game.
Kylian Mbappé scored twice from the penalty spot to help Real Madrid beat Marseille to secure maximum points in their opening Champions League game.
Marseille opened the scoring through Timothy Weah before Kylian Mbappé equalised from the spot. The French side had a boost when Dani Carvajal was sent off, but Los Blancos found the winner through another Mbappe spotkick.
Key match details
Real Madrid began on the front foot but had an early disappointment when Trent Alexander-Arnold. The hosts kept piling forward but failed to break the deadlock. Marseille reminded the Bernabéu of their own threat when Timothy Weah’s curling strike narrowly missed the target.
The visitors went a step further in the 22nd minute, as Mason Greenwood robbed Arda Güler in midfield and slipped in Weah, who rifled beyond Thibaut Courtois to silence the stadium.
Weah stung Courtois’ palms again moments later, but Geoffrey Kondogbia undid the good work by clumsily tripping Rodrygo in the box. Mbappé duly dispatched the penalty to draw Los Blancos level.
Rodrygo nearly turned the game on its head with a curling effort, while Rulli denied Aurélien Tchouaméni from distance before Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang struck the side-netting at the other end.
Madrid resumed after the break with renewed urgency, and Mbappé saw a strike deflect onto the bar via Aubameyang’s outstretched boot before the Gabonese forward himself forced Courtois into action.
The tempo then dipped, and Dani Carvajal further complicated matters for the hosts with a needless red card at 72 minutes for headbutting Rulli. Marseille, however, suffered the game’s decisive blow when Facundo Medina was penalised for fouling VinÃcius Júnior in the box.
Mbappé’s spot-kick squirmed through Rulli’s hands to complete his brace. The goal secured maximum points for Real Madrid ahead of the weekend’s LALIGA action against Espanyol.
