Mbappe’s penalty kick seals Real Madrid’s 1-0 victory over Osasuna in La Liga opener

Kylian Mbappe commenced his second season with Real Madrid on a high note, ensuring a 1-0 victory over Osasuna in their Spanish league opener. The victory, a result of a 51st-minute penalty kick converted by Mbappe, started their new coach Xabi Alonso’s tenure on a high.

The scorer of the only goal, Mbappe, was also the leading scorer in his debut season with Madrid, and his effective performance in the opening match also gave positive encouragement to coach Alonso. The former Madrid player joined the team before the Club World Cup, replacing Carlo Ancelotti, who moved to coach Brazil.

Commenting on his debut as a coach, Alonso called it unforgettable and expressed hopes of celebrating many more victories.

Alonso began the match with three of the club’s fresh signings, Alvaro Carreras, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Dean Huijsen. In the 68th minute, Franco Mastantuono replaced Brahim Diaz, and received a warmly enthusiastic response from the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium crowd.

While Mastantuono, 18, had the opportunity to score in the 89th minute, his shot was saved by the Osasuna goalkeeper. On commenting about their contributions, Coach Alonso said that the newcomers performed well and showed no pressure wearing the Madrid jersey.

The match also saw Abel Bretones, Osasuna’s defender, being sent off for a high arm block against Madrid forward Gonzalo Garcia.

Ruben Garcia, midfielder of Osasuna, admitted that while they knew Madrid would dominate, his team put up a competitive fight but couldn’t get too close to Madrid’s goal, conceding that Madrid deserved the victory.

The match saw Madrid maintain possession over 70% of the time but struggled to penetrate the tight Osasuna defense, finally making a breakthrough in the second half when Mbappe scored.

Real Madrid was in the second position to Barcelona in the Spanish league last season, while Osasuna managed to finish ninth.