A brace from Kylian Mbappé lifted an undermanned Real Madrid past Marseille to kick off Los Blancos’ 2025–26 Champions League campaign with a 2–1 victory.
After mounting their worst Champions League finish in five years last season, Real Madrid arrived at the Santiago Bernabéu eager to begin anew under Xabi Alonso. The Spaniard turned heads just an hour before kick off when he benched Vinícius Júnior for the clash, putting his faith in Rodrygo on the left wing instead.
Los Blancos got off to a strong start in their Champions League opener, almost finding the back of the net inside of two minutes through an ambitious Mbappé bicycle kick. Things quickly turned sour for the hosts, though, when Trent Alexander-Arnold was forced to come off the pitch just five minutes into the game with what appeared to be a hamstring injury.
Alonso’s men kept firing chances at Gerónimo Rulli, but it was Marseille that got themselves on the scoresheet in the 22nd minute. Mason Greenwood pounced on a loose ball from Arda Güler and took off toward goal before playing a simple pass to Tim Weah, who buried a right-footed strike to put his side up 1–0.
Real Madrid mustered a response just before the half-hour mark. Geoffrey Kondogbia committed a clumsy tackle on Rodrygo inside the penalty box, promoting referee Irfan Peljto to immediately point to the spot. Mbappé converted from 12 yards out to bring Los Blancos level.
The France international nearly gave his side the lead to begin the second half, but his deflected effort hit the crossbar. Frustration slowly began to build for the Spanish giants in their search for a winner that all came to a head in the 70th minute.
Dani Carvajal received a red card after a clash of heads with Rulli following a tense altercation between the two. For the second match in a row, Real Madrid were forced to muster a comeback with just 10 men.
Who else but Vinícius Júnior and Mbappé to rescue all three points for Real Madrid? A darting run by the Brazilian forced Facundo Medina to make a sliding tackle inside his own box, but the defender swiped the ball with his hand. Mbappé then stepped up to the spot in the 81st minute and bagged his brace to secure the win for Alonso’s side.
Check out Real Madrid’s player ratings from the victory below.
Real Madrid Player Ratings vs. Marseille (4-2-3-1)
Subs not used: Andriy Lunin (GK), Fran González (GK), David Alaba, Fran García, Dani Ceballos, Eduardo Camavinga, Jude Bellingham, Gonzalo García.
Player of the Match: Kylian Mbappé
Olympique Marseille (4-2-3-1): Gerónimo Rulli; Benjamin Pavard, Leonardo Balerdi, Facundo Medina, Emerson; Geoffrey Kondogbia, Pierre-Emile Højbjerg; Mason Greenwood, Matthew O’Riley, Tim Weah; Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Subs: Igor Paixão, Arthur Vermeeren, Michael Amir Murillo, Amine Gouiri, CJ Egan-Riley.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Real Madrid Player Ratings vs. Marseille: Mbappe Plays Hero in Dramatic 2–1 Victory.
