Kylian Mbappé’s transfer from French PSG to Real Madrid was one of the main topics on the agenda in every transfer window in the last 4 or 5 years. Every summer and winter there were reports that this transition would take place, but the French striker remained at the Parisian club. Although the chances of this transfer in 2022 increased, in the end, according to many reports, he deceived the “Royal Club” by renewing his contract with PSG.
“Caspian” newspaper article on the subject.
A great transition that costs air
This summer the long-awaited transfer finally took place. Mbappé changed PSG, where he wore the shirt for seven years, for Real Madrid. The biggest transfer of the summer transfer window, as expected, caused a lot of noise. But the most notable thing was that Madrid did not pay anything for Mbappé. Kilian, valued at 180 million euros, arrived at the Spanish club as a free agent. It was a great transfer victory for Real Madrid over PSG.
Real Club was champion of Spain last season, won the Super Cup and won the Champions League. The Madrid players were able to easily overcome their rivals both at the national level and in continental competitions. With the arrival of Kylian Mbappé, it was expected that Real Madrid, which is already very strong, would increase its greatness. However, expectations have not yet been met.
Bad performance of the “Royal Club”.
Real Madrid’s performance at the beginning of the season cannot be considered successful. The team is second in La Liga with 27 points from 12 games, six points behind Barcelona, which has one game less. Of course, the difference for this part of the season is not that big, there are still 2/3 of the league ahead. But one of the main moments that caused concern and discontent among fans is the 0-4 defeat against Barcelona in the Clásico. Carlo Ancelotti’s team, who lost by a wide margin to their arch-rivals at home, were criticized.
Things are not going well in the Champions League either. The team is in 18th place among 36 participants with six points from the remaining four rounds of the league phase of the tournament. Defeats against Lille as a visitor and Milan at home caused the last champion to lose its status as the main favorite.
Does not fit with Real Madrid’s style of play
For Carlo Ancelotti’s Real Madrid, who prefer a lethal counter-attacking style of play, having a quick Kylian Mbappé option in attack seems at first glance one of the best possible scenarios. However, what happened in the remaining matches suggests the opposite: the 25-year-old Frenchman is an obstacle for the team.
Mbappé has so far scored eight goals and two assists in 16 games in all competitions. He is only behind Vinicius, who scored 12 goals. But the Brazilian also surpasses him in number of assists (5). Mbappé’s numbers are too low for the main forward of a club like Real Madrid.
In general, it is not fair to judge performance based on numbers alone. The point is that Mbappé clearly does not adapt to Real Madrid’s style of play. He usually plays as a left back for PSG and the French national team. However, Real Madrid does not have this opportunity. Carlo Ancelotti uses Vinicius Junior in that position. In this case, Mbappé has to be at the forefront of the attack. It is true that this position is not foreign to him, but here its effectiveness decreases.
Furthermore, Mbappé’s lack of active participation in pressing creates difficulties for the team. In this case, more power lies with Jud Bellingham. This makes the English striker’s game weaker. That’s why Bellingham’s performance dropped so much compared to last season.
Mbappé was reportedly not even included in Carlo Ancelotti’s plans. His transfer was a personal project of the club’s president, Florentino Pérez. Madrid currently regrets this measure.
Psychological problems
Relatives also say that Kylian Mbappé has psychological problems. According to the French press, the 25-year-old footballer has been suffering from psychological problems for several months and is working with specialists in this regard. As if that weren’t enough, Kilian was charged with assault while on holiday in Stockholm a month ago. After the rumors, he was left out of the French team.
Some media attribute the player’s poor performance to his psychological stress. There is a lot of pressure on Mbappé and he cannot handle it. The rumors and the general atmosphere made it difficult for the player to adapt to the Madrid club, so his match was not taken.
Of course, it is not correct to attribute Real Madrid’s weak performance solely to Mbappé. There is a general decline in the team compared to last season. At the same time, the injury epidemic does not allow Ancelotti to get the most out of players in many cases.
Either way, there is still most of the season ahead. It is not excluded that both the team and Mbappé could return to their previous performance. However, it seems that the new formula that will be created with Mbappé is not yet fully developed. If a solution is not found soon, it is not ruled out that the situation will worsen.
