Kylian Mbappe equalled Cristiano Ronaldo‘s 33-goal haul from his debut season at Real Madrid with a brace in his team’s 3-2 success over Leganes at Bernabeu on Saturday night.
The France international made the breakthrough from the penalty spot, before scoring a well-worked free kick in the latter stages to secure a vital three points for Carlo Ancelotti‘s side in the Spanish capital.
Mbappe has now moved onto 33 goals in 45 matches for Real Madrid this term, matching Cristiano Ronaldo‘s total from his first campaign at the club in 2009-10, although the Portuguese played just 35 times that season.
The forward is now second on the list with Cristiano Ronaldo and Ruud van Nistelrooy, ahead of Ronaldo, with the Brazilian striking 30 times in his first season for the capital giants.
Ivan Zamorano is currently at the top of the standings, having scored 37 goals in 45 matches during his first season for Real Madrid in 1992-93, but Mbappe is certainly on course to break that record.
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Mbappe is chasing down Zamorano’s Real Madrid record
“He is much more active and involved in the game. He has adapted very well and is making a difference. That’s what we want from him. He tried the free-kick yesterday and it went well. He was very effective. We put our trust in him today,” head coach Ancelotti told reporters following the comeback success over Leganes.
Mbappe, meanwhile, told reporters after the match: “A difficult match. After the break, it’s always difficult because you get into a rhythm at club level and then you go away with the national team. But we know what we always have to do: win.
“We started strongly in the opponent’s half and scored the first goal. Then we didn’t play well and conceded two goals, but we knew that if we played well, we would score two goals. In the second half, we scored them and won the game. We’re really happy.”
Referencing equalling Ronaldo’s 33-goal total in his first campaign, Mbappe said: “It’s very special. The most important things are the things you do with the team, but to have the same number of goals as Cristiano is always good.
“We know what he represents for Real Madrid and for me. We always talk and he gives me a lot of advice. But as I always say, we have to win trophies.”
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Ancelotti: ‘Real Madrid have suffered in every game this season’
Ancelotti also praised his team for navigating their way through a tough match on Saturday, with the result moving them level on points with division leaders Barcelona in the La Liga table.
“We didn’t play a bad game. We had good control, but we lacked balance and that’s why we conceded two undeserved goals given what we did in the first half. We could have managed the advantage better and we suffered too much. After the international break it usually happens, but we struggled to find our rhythm,” said the manager.
“We were not well-positioned, but we had the intensity because we came from behind and in the end we won. I can’t remember a game in which we didn’t suffer. The important thing is that we all suffer and all make sacrifices. There are no easy games and we are well aware of that. We have to suffer.”
Real Madrid’s attention will now switch to the Copa del Rey, preparing to welcome Real Sociedad to Bernabeu for the second leg of their semi-final on Tuesday night.
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