The wait finally came to an end as a brace from Kylian Mbappe led Real Madrid to a comfortable victory in a tricky game against Real Betis.
Dani Ceballos made a surprise start for this match, replacing Arda Güler who was expected to play. Rodrygo, meanwhile, replaced Brahim Díaz from the previous fixture.
As it has been for the league fixtures this season, the first half turned out to be a frustrating one for Los Blancos as they had as many as 13 shots at goal without actually scoring.
The referee made surprising decisions too as a handball and later on a foul on Dani Ceballos were not awarded as penalties nor even checked on VAR.
Thibaut Courtois was forced into action as well, making a few important saves to keep the away side at bay and protect his goal.
Rodrygo turned out to be the best player of the first half, making some good combinations up front and had a shot on target as well.
The initial period of the 2nd half turned out to be slightly different as there was an urgency to score in order to settle the nerves as the scoreline continued to read 0-0.
Brahim Díaz was introduced in the 65th minute – along with Fran García – and made an immediate impact. Just two minutes later, the Moroccan kept the ball in play as it was about to head out, played it to Rodrygo who passed it to Fede Valverde and the Uruguayan, with a sublime no-look backheel, played a through ball in the path of Kylian Mbappe who found the back of the net.
This goal was a long time coming because even in this match, the Frenchman had 7 shots on target prior to this goal.
A penalty was finally rewarded in the 74th minute after Rui Silva ran from his goal to prevent Vinicius making a run and in the rush, made a clear foul. The Brazilian pumped the fans up and gave the penalty for Mbappe to take, who easily slotted it home.
The game looked dead and buried from this point on with Betis not making any significant inroads. However, Madrid looked to triple their lead after Endrick’s shot was saved by Rui Silva.
This was, by far, the most complete performance of the season from Los Blancos. They had all bases covered with players like Dani Ceballos, Fran García and Brahim Díaz looking impressive.
Aurelien Tchouaméni also stepped up and put on an impeccable display as he was all over the place along with Fede Valverde – who himself has been playing on a whole other level this season.
Kylian Mbappe was awarded the Man of the Match award deservingly, after scoring a his first goal at his dream club in front of the Bernabeu faithful. The Frenchman acknowledged the fact that even when he did not score, he was still loved by the fans and there are still many more goals to come. However, Carlo Ancelotti begged to differ and mentioned that they have not played their best football yet.
Next up, the players head to their respective national teams for the international break. Upon return, Real Madrid will travel to San Sebastian to take on Real Sociedad.
