WarsawFirst match, first goal, first title: Kylian Mbappé made his debut in style with Real Madrid, helping them beat Atalanta 2-0 in Warsaw on Wednesday in the European Super Cup.
Uruguayan Fede Valverde (59), pushing in a pass from his Brazilian teammate Vinícius Jr, had opened the only goal of the match, in which Mbappé (68) then put the sentence, in his case assisted by Jude Bellingham.
Just a week after joining his new team’s collective training, Mbappé showed that he is still lacking in form and needs to adapt to his teammates, but he was able to appear in the area to kill off the match.
“It was a great night for me because I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time, to be able to play with this shirt, with this badge and for these fans. This is a great moment for me. We won a title, which was the important thing today because at Madrid you always have to win,” said the French striker in statements to Movistar television.
In doing so, he helped his new club to become super champions for the sixth time in its history, which means that Real Madrid now lead the list of winners alone, leaving behind Barcelona and Milan, each five times crowned champions.
“We suffered a bit today in the first half because Atalanta pressed and defended very well. In the second half we did better, they showed signs of fatigue and we had more space,” analysed Carlo Ancelotti, who with his fifth European Super Cup is once again the coach to have won the tournament the most times, leaving Josep Guardiola (4) behind.
The challenge of the seven titles
The Champions League winners thus fulfilled their status as favourites against an Atalanta side that won the Europa League last season but was unable to bring the title back to their country, which has not won it since 2007.
With this mission accomplished in Poland, Real Madrid has added its first official title in a season in which it is aiming for six more: the Spanish League, the Champions League, the Copa del Rey, the Spanish Super Cup, the new Intercontinental Cup and the also new expanded version of the Club World Cup.
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At the start of the match, as expected, all eyes were on Mbappé, who had his first chance as a ‘merengue’ player in the 14th minute, with a shot that was blocked by Isak Hien.
It was Atalanta who had the better chances before the break, first with a shot from Dutchman Marten de Roon (25) that touched Brazilian Éder Militao before going off the crossbar. The also Brazilian Éderson, from distance, had another important one for the Bergamo team.
Real Madrid’s best chance before the break came in the form of another shot hitting the crossbar, this time with a pass from Vinícius to his compatriot Rodrygo, who came close to beating the Italians (45+1).
Valverde opens the way
In the second half, the ‘Dea’ continued to be more dangerous. First Mario Pasalic’s header forced a great save from Thibaut Courtois in the 47th minute and a minute later Matteo Ruggeri sent the ball just wide.
It took an hour of play for the score to change, with a pass from Vinícius allowing Valverde to score in the 59th minute on the night he debuted the number 8 shirt he inherited from his admired Toni Kroos.
In the 61st minute, Vini himself had a one-on-one with Atalanta’s Argentine goalkeeper, Juan Musso, who was able to save the situation.
In the 82nd minute, the ball was passed in front of Atalanta’s goal after a defender touched a cross from Luka Modric. No one could score the third, but in the end it didn’t matter.
A minute later, the star of the night, Kylian Mbappé, left the field to a standing ovation, on the night in which he fulfilled his childhood dream of becoming a Real Madrid player.
“There was a moment when we could have unbalanced, but in the end Madrid are fair winners,” conceded Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini.
With no time for celebrations, on Sunday the white team will begin the defence of its national title with the first match of the League, in which it will visit Mallorca.
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– 2024-08-21 20:25:18
