Real Madrid Triumphs 2-1 Over Marseille As Mbappe Scores Two Penalties In Alonso's Debut

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Kylian Mbappe's two penalties secured a 2-1 victory for Real Madrid against Marseille in Xabi Alonso's first Champions League match as manager. Despite facing challenges, including playing with ten men after Dani Carvajal's red card, Madrid triumphed at the Santiago Bernabeu. Mbappe's performance was crucial, continuing his impressive season start.

Timothy Weah scored first for Marseille on his Champions League debut. Real Madrid faced an early setback when Trent Alexander-Arnold left the field with a hamstring injury just five minutes into the game. Franco Mastantuono also hit the post for Madrid. However, Geoffrey Kondogbia's foul on Rodrygo allowed Mbappe to equalise from the penalty spot in the 28th minute.

Despite Rulli diving correctly, Mbappe placed his penalty into the left corner. Madrid missed several opportunities before Carvajal's clash with Rulli led to his dismissal after a VAR review by referee Irfan Peljto. The decisive moment came when Medina handled while tackling Vinicius Junior, allowing Mbappe to score again from the spot and secure victory.

Madrid dominated with 15 shots on target, their highest in a coach's Champions League debut since 2003-04. They had 11 shots on target in the first half alone, a record since data collection began that season. Weah became Marseille's first player to score on his Champions League debut since Gabriel Heinze against AC Milan in 2009.

Mbappe reached a milestone of 50 goals for Real Madrid across all competitions in just 64 matches. This achievement makes him the fastest to reach this mark since Cristiano Ronaldo, who scored 51 goals in 54 games by November 2010. Alonso will likely view this win as deserved given Madrid's expected goals tally of 3.65 compared to Marseille’s 0.73.

The match highlighted both teams' strengths and weaknesses but ultimately showcased Real Madrid's resilience and Mbappe’s exceptional talent. His contribution accounted for a significant portion of Madrid’s expected goals, underlining his importance to Alonso’s side.