After three wins in a row in La Liga, Real Madrid was defeated 2-1 by Athletic Club on Wednesday. It is a result that sees the defending champion lose in the title race after Barcelona won convincingly in Mallorca 24 hours earlier.
They were costly mistakes that caused Real Madrid to collapse at San Mames. Federico Valverde gifted the winner to Gorka Guruzeta, while Kylian Mbappe missed his second penalty in a row as the score stood at 1-0. According to Diario AS, Carlo Ancelotti strongly defended the latter after receiving more criticism.
“I have not spoken to Mbappe. It was a complicated match – even, hard-fought and competitive. When we equalized you might think about control and small details cost us tonight. We missed the penalty… I don't need to judge a player's play because of a penalty that is sometimes scored and sometimes missed. It's clear he's sad and disappointed, but we have to move on.
“He is not at his best, but you have to give him time to adapt. He has scored ten goals and is working to do better.”
Ancelotti also clarified the situation of the penalty taker at Real Madrid following the incident.
“Vinicius has usually taken a lot of penalties and they are all good. There are three who take penalties: Mbappé, Bellingham and Vinicius.”
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