Kylian Mbappe details his Real Madrid rock bottom as Liverpool star partly to blame
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Kylian Mbappe has revealed the moment he realised he hit rock bottom at Real Madrid, after missing back-to-back penalties against Liverpool and Athletic Bilbao last year. Mbappe has hit 18 goals from 30 appearances since signing for the La Liga giants last summer but his move has not been all plain sailing after Real suffered a few dips in the 2024-25 season.
The Frenchman failed to score in his first three games for Madrid before going on a much-improved run in front goal - though he later had another below-par spell the following month. While Madrid are top of the La Liga table this season, their Champions League campaign has not been as successful after three defeats - one of which came at the hands of Liverpool in November.
Arne Slot's Reds won 2-0 thanks to goals from Alexis Mac Allister and Cody Gakpo, with Mbappe kicking himself after Caoimhin Kelleher saved his penalty. His agony continued as he missed another spot-kick in a 2-1 loss to Bilbao a week later. While Mbappe has since scored seven goals in his last ten, he said this was his low moment at the Bernabeu as he revealed how he bounced back from a difficult moment.
Speaking to Spanish outlet AS, he said: "What happened to me was mental. And in Bilbao I realised that I couldn't do any worse. That's when I said to myself, 'Come on, you haven't come to Madrid to play badly'.". When asked about his difficult start, he added: "It wasn't shyness. But you have to come to Real Madrid with humility, because it's a team that has won everything and you can't come with demands, ordering 'pass me the ball'. No. Here you come with the utmost respect... And to work.".
