Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has admitted Kylian Mbappe “can do better” after the Frenchman missed another penalty against Athletic Club.
One week after missing from the spot against Liverpool in the Champions League, Mbappe saw a tame effort saved by Athletic stopper Julen Agirrezabala, whose heroics went on to inspire a 2-1 win for the Basque side.
After the game, it was bluntly put to Ancelotti that Mbappe “has not been 1% of the player” he was at Paris Saint-Germain, sparking a passionate defence from the boss.
“I haven’t spoken to him,” Ancelotti began. “We missed the penalty, but I don’t have to evaluate a player’s game by the penalty, sometimes they score and sometimes they don’t. He’s sad but we have to keep going.
“He’s much more than at his 1%. He’s not at his best but we have to give him time. He has scored ten goals. He can do better, of course, and he is working on it.”
Mbappe also took to social media to take accountability for his poor start to life as a Madrid player.
“Bad result,” he wrote. “A big mistake in a match in which every detail counts.
“I take full responsibility. It’s a difficult time, but it’s the best time to change this situation and show who I am.”
The defeat sees Madrid hand control of the La Liga title race back to Barcelona, who sit four points clear at the top of the table having played one more game than their Clasico rivals.
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