Kylian Mbappé has alternated between cold and lukewarm since his arrival at Real Madrid. And this Wednesday evening, there was a warning of very cold weather for the Bondynois, who will not regain his confidence after this meeting lost by the Merengues in Liverpool (2-0).
There was clearly a better place to get going than the lair of these Reds, dashing leaders of the Premier League, and at the top of this new-look Champions League. And Real Madrid, decimated by injuries (Vinicius, Rodrygo, Tchouameni, Carvajal, Militao, Alaba…), ended up giving in to the infernal pace set by Arne Slot’s men.
While Thibaut Courtois had pushed back the deadline in the first period, notably in front of Darwin Nunez (23rd), Liverpool logically opened the scoring through Alexis MacAlister, at the conclusion of a nice collective movement (1-0, 52nd). Real were not spared by fate, with the new injury of an executive, in this case Eduardo Camavinga (57th). But the other turning point came immediately.
Real Madrid only 24th
After a penalty conceded by Andrew Robertson for a foul on Lucas Vazquez, Kylian Mbappé had the opportunity to equalize. But the Frenchman, who was well shaken by Virgil Van Dijk in the first period, before being caught by Conor Bradley after a good rush (32nd), missed his attempt, letting Caomhin Kelleher push his shot back halfway (61st ).
Overall, while he should have carried Real’s attack, Mbappé still experienced a lot of waste in this meeting, and we had to wait until the 88th minute to see him shoot a second time on goal. Liverpool then led by two goals, thanks to Cody Gakpo (2-0, 76th), even if Mohamed Salah also missed a penalty (70th).
The Reds continue their flawless run in C1, and prepare as best they can for their other shock of the week, Sunday against Manchester City. Real, for its part, is in an unworthy 24th place after a third defeat in five Champions League matches. And it’s not this match that will put Mbappé back in the right direction.
