Real Madrid put the defeat against Liverpool in the Champions League behind them with a 2-0 La Liga victory over Getafe.
Kylian Mbappe, too, started to heal after the midweek disappointment by scoring in the victory at the Bernabeu shortly after a Jude Bellingham penalty had opened the scoring.
With a game in hand, Carlo Ancelotti’s side have 33 points and are one point behind Barcelona, who have only gained one point from a possible nine in their last three games.
“Despite the difficulties, which are many because we have a lot of injuries, we are still fighting. We have regained our concentration and spirit. Little by little we are going to solve the problems,” said Ancelotti after the match.
Guillermo Rai breaks down the action from Sunday’s game.
How Mbappe healed at the Bernabeu
After enduring one of the worst nights of his career at Anfield, Mbappe was back in the spotlight against Getafe.
From the outset, the Madrid supporters chanted his name…
Bernabéu fans supporting Mbappé. @TheAthleticFC pic.twitter.com/mrWBmUM2nZ
— Guillermo Rai (@GuillermoRai_) December 1, 2024
Although he is struggling to adapt to the team since his summer move from Paris Saint-Germain — with Ancelotti and captain Luka Modric both acknowledging he was suffering a knock to his confidence after the match at Anfield — the France forward scored a great first-half goal.
In the move, initiated by Bellingham, the Madrid star beat the Getafe defence at pace and fired a shot just inside the post for the second goal of the afternoon.
“Kylian Mbappe, Kylian Mbappe,” echoed from the Bernabeu.
Jude Bellingham ➡️ Kylian Mbappé
The Real Madrid stars combine brilliantly and double their side’s advantage ⚪ pic.twitter.com/BPpjcdgUk6
— Premier Sports (@PremSportsTV) December 1, 2024
Ancelotti celebrated the goal with his arms outstretched and shouting excitedly in a way he has rarely been seen this season.
“Yes, I was relieved because it was 2-0. For him, it was also a relief because it was a great goal… I think the fans understand more than anyone the moment of the team, the moment of the players. He could have done better against Liverpool. They supported him in the right way,” said Ancelotti.
Because of Vinicius Junior’s absence, Mbappe started again on the left, his natural position, but rotated throughout the match with Rodrygo, who had started on the right.
Mbappe struggled to combine with his team-mates at first but, after the goal, he gained confidence and set up Brahim Diaz for a chance in the second half. He also completed the most passes in the final third of the pitch (20), well ahead of the second-most (Federico Valverde with 11).
Mbappe has room for improvement, though. With 15 minutes to go, he again accelerated, dribbled past David Soria, the Getafe goalkeeper, but missed an empty net after drifting too far out. Just a minute later, he failed to beat Soria in a one-on-one. In stoppage time, Arda Guler gave him another great chance, but Mbappe missed again.
Despite that, the crowd once again recognised his effort and applauded him loudly.
Mbappe has scored 10 goals this season and is the second-highest scorer (only behind Vinicius Jr, with 12). He has also been man of the match six times in La Liga, the most of any player in the team.
“Mbappe is a player with great quality. This is like a bottle that has liquid inside and it seems like it doesn’t come out, but suddenly it all comes out. And that’s what’s going to happen to him,” said team-mate Thibaut Courtois.
Within the club, there is confidence that he will get back to his best, and these goals will help.
Another Bellingham show, despite a scare
The 21-year-old midfielder has scored three goals in the last three La Liga games and is slowly getting back to last season’s level. All this coincides with his recent change of role.
With the arrival of Mbappe (and to fit him into a 4-3-3 alongside Vinicius Jr and Rodrygo), Ancelotti moved Bellingham a little bit deeper.
Numerous injuries in the side forced the England international to continue to make a defensive sacrifice, which limited his attacking ability.
However, with Madrid’s return to a system with only two pure strikers, Bellingham was once again a key player in attack.
His good form has improved the team, who can no longer imagine themselves without him up front. After Mbappe, Bellingham had the most shots (2) in the match.
Moreover, he is considered a serious candidate to be one of the future leaders of the dressing room, as The Athletic has already reported. But there are details that already show this situation and, when Madrid suffered the penalty, Bellingham was in charge of taking it.
As footage published by DAZN later showed, after a penalty was awarded, Mbappe picked up the ball and gave it to Bellingham. The midfielder shot low and coolly after dropping goalkeeper Soria.
As he celebrated giving Madrid the lead, Bellingham stared at his opponent and challenged him, pointing to his eyes to say he had read Soria’s moves.
He rounded it all off with a brilliant assist for Mbappe to make it 2-0. In just 45 minutes, he had one goal, one assist, one key pass and 37 touches.
Bellingham was replaced at half-time, however, after receiving a knock. “He has had a neck problem and has not been able to recover (during the game). It’s nothing. In a couple of days he will be able to recover,” Ancelotti said after the game.
After the match, club sources, who wished to remain anonymous to protect relationships, told The Athletic that tests showed it was not serious and that Bellingham should be fine to play against Athletic Club on Wednesday.
Is Garcia overtaking Mendy in the left-back pecking order?
Just a few months ago, no one would have expected Fran Garcia to overtake Ferland Mendy at left-back.
The French defender finished last season playing a key role in winning La Liga and the Champions League, and renewed his contract for three more years in September, but since then his level has dropped and he has lost prominence.
The coaching staff still consider him to be the best left-back in the world defensively when he is fit and they trust him for important games.
But Garcia has started in three of the last four games and against Liverpool, he came on for Mendy, who was unable to control Mohamed Salah.
“The last few games (Fran) has played more and has shown a lot of quality, I liked him a lot,” Ancelotti said after the match. “We have another full-back and with him, we have won two Champions League titles. In some games Fran can help more, he is an attacking player. But Mendy is still a fantastic full-back.”
Spain full-back Garcia was among the three most active players in the final third, with 10 passes in that area and creating one chance. All this without neglecting his defensive duties, where he stood out for his recoveries (five).
It remains to be seen what the future holds for him in matches against tougher opponents, but in the Spain camp, they believe he has earned Ancelotti’s trust through hard work.
(Top image: David S. Bustamante/Real Madrid via Getty Images)
