Real Madrid claimed a 2-1 win over Olympique de Marseille in their first match of the 2025/26 Champions League on September 16 at Santiago Bernabeu.
Both of Los Blancos’ goals came from Kylian Mbappe, who found the back of the net twice after the home side were awarded a penalty in each half.
By scoring the brace, Mbappe reached a major milestone at Real Madrid. The Frenchman has now netted 50 goals for the Spanish giants in 64 matches across all competitions, which makes him the fastest Los Blancos player to do so after Cristiano Ronaldo in November 2010.
Following Real Madrid’s victory, Mbappe spoke about the Ballon d’Or, revealing his plans for the ceremony this year.
What did Real Madrid talisman Kylian Mbappe say?
Mbappe arrived at Santiago Bernabeu from Paris Saint-Germain in 2024, and his debut season at Los Blancos saw the 26-year-old record 44 goals and five assists in 59 games. He was La Liga’s top scorer in the last campaign.
Real Madrid, meanwhile, did not have an impressive run last season, which ended in a second-place finish in the top flight and without any major trophies. This narrows down Mbappe’s chances as a 2025 Ballon d’Or contender, and the talented Monaco graduate conveyed the same.
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While speaking to CBS Sports after Madrid’s Champions League opener, Mbappe also mentioned that he will be ‘happy’ if his former PSG teammate Ousmane Dembele wins the award, and said,
“To win it, you have to win things, so I have to help my club win trophies, and after that, we’ll see. I will be happy if [Ousmane] Dembélé wins because he is my friend and I have supported him from the start. I will watch it on TV and hope that he wins it,” as per GOAL.
Dembele netted a total of 35 goals and provided 16 assists in 53 matches for PSG last season while winning the treble that also included the French club’s first-ever Champions League title.
While Mbappe has confirmed his stance on the 2025 Ballon d’Or ceremony slated for September 22, it remains to be seen what Real Madrid and other players decide, considering Los Blancos were not in attendance last year.
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