French striker is enjoying his best moment in Spain since making his debut for the Merengue club in August 2024, scoring four goals in the last three games
The striker blamed “mental issues” for the difficulties he faced in his first few weeks at , last year. The Frenchman said he changed his mentality after missing two penalties in the same week at the beginning of December. “I was thinking too much about everything”, he declared, this Tuesday (20). Mbappé is experiencing his best moment in Spain since he debuted for the club in August last year. He is coming off four goals in the last three games. The current situation contrasts with the below-expected performances in the first months. The difficulties culminated in the sequence of games in which he wasted two penalties, in the last weeks of the year. The second penalty was missed in the defeat to Athletic Bilbao, in the Spanish Championship.
“After the game in Bilbao, I changed my mentality,” said Mbappé. “I couldn’t do anything worse. I didn’t come to Real Madrid to play badly. I was fine physically, so it had to be more of a mental change.” The striker said he had reached a diagnosis: “I was thinking too much about everything, about how to do things, how to position myself on the field, whether I was in Vinícius Júnior’s area on the field or in Rodrygo’s area… And, when you think too much , doesn’t play well. When you arrive at Real Madrid, you have to be humble, the team had just won the Champions League, I couldn’t arrive and ask everyone to give me the ball. You have to show respect.”
Mbappé also said that he was the target of high expectations, as he was the club’s main signing in that transfer window. “When you’re a player like me, with everything expected of me, it’s normal for people to talk. But for me it’s not personal, you have to stay calm and focus on your game. I knew I could change the situation and I did,” he declared. The striker made the statements at a pre-game press conference for Real Madrid’s clash with RB Salzburg, this Wednesday (22), in the penultimate round of the first phase of the season.
*With information from Estadão Conteúdo
Published by Matheus Lopes
