PALMA, Spain, Aug 19 (AFP): French football star Kylian Mbappe was left frustrated on his La Liga debut with Real Madrid on Sunday after failing to beat Real Mallorca and ending the match in a 1-1 draw.
Madrid's star-studded side struggled to break down Mallorca, which came closer to winning the game in the final stages at Son Moix stadium, AFP reported.
The former Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) star was thwarted by Mallorca goalkeeper Dominik Greif and, after Rodrygo sent Madrid ahead early on, the hosts levelled in the second half through Vedat Muriqi's towering header.
"We went ahead, we had chances to score the second, and then in the second half we lacked balance," Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti told reporters.
"We conceded counter-attacks, it was not a good game, it was quite a clear game to see that we need to defend better and have better balance on the pitch."
Ancelotti selected the same starting line-up which defeated Atalanta to win the UEFA Super Cup on Wednesday, with Jude Bellingham in midfield behind the Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo attacking line.
Mbappe scored in that victory but the 25-year-old footballer was unable to celebrate his first match in his new homeland with another goal.
Ancelotti was not impressed with his team's work-rate.
"We have to do better, with more attitude," continued the Italian coach. "This game can serve us to learn a lot from, it's a game where it was quite clear where we had a problem. Mallorca had a very good game in a defensive sense, better than us."
© 2024 - All Rights with The Financial Express
