Mbappé nets brace as 10-man Real Madrid come from behind to beat Marseille

Kylian Mbappe slammed home two penalties for Real Madrid as the record 15-time winners opened their Champions League campaign with a controversial 2-1 comeback win over Olympique Marseille on Tuesday.

Xabi Alonso benched Vinicius Junior among several changes to the side which beat Real Sociedad in La Liga on Saturday to continue Madrid’s 100 percent start in La Liga.

Jude Bellingham was named on the bench for the first time after undergoing shoulder surgery in July, but neither he nor the returning Eduardo Camavinga made it on to the pitch.

Madrid coach Xabi Alonso was dealt an early blow on his first European game at the helm of the Spanish giants when Trent Alexander-Arnold limped off with a thigh injury.

Alexander-Arnold limped off after just three minutes, to be replaced by veteran Carvajal.

Mason Greenwood picked Arda Guler’s pocket and fed the Timothy Weah, who slammed past Thibaut Courtois at the near post for his first Marseille goal.

Mbappe, who watched former side Paris Saint-Germain win the Champions League last season after he left for Madrid, almost opened the scoring with a spectacular overhead effort which dropped just wide.

Franco Mastantuono, Real Madrid’s youngest Champions League starter at 18 years and 33 days, hit the inside of the near post as both teams sought to break the deadlock.

The Belgian goalkeeper denied Weah from distance as the Juventus winger, on loan in France, impressed. Real Madrid equalised when Geoffrey Kondogbia clumsily bundled over Rodrygo Goes in the box.

Mbappe, in fine form at the start of the season, dispatched the penalty past Rulli’s outstretched arm.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang drilled just wide and then tested Courtois in the second half as Marseille continued to give as good as they got.

Madrid finished the second game running with 10 men after Carvajal squared off with Rulli and then pushed his head into the goalkeeper’s.

Medina slid in to challenge Vinicius and the ball hit his arm, with the referee awarding a penalty, which Mbappe gratefully dispatched to claim victory for Los Blancos.

Kylian Mbappé has now scored 50 goals as Real Madrid player since joining Los Blancos in July 2024.

However, just as they did against Real Sociedad after Dean Huijsen’s red card, they finished with three points.

Source: msn