Carlo Ancelotti said Kylian Mbappé‘s “period of adaptation has finished” ahead of Real Madrid‘s last game of 2024, hosting Sevilla at the Bernabéu on Sunday.
Mbappé scored the opening goal in Madrid’s 3-0 win over Pachuca in Qatar on Wednesday, making it 13 goals in all competitions this season and two trophies already, adding the FIFA Intercontinental Cup to the UEFA Super Cup won back in August.
Madrid go into the Sevilla game vying with Barcelona and Atlético Madrid — who face off on Saturday — at the top of the LaLiga table.
“[Mbappé’s] period of adaptation has finished,” Ancelotti said in a news conference on Saturday. “He’s now at his best, but he can still improve. He’s played well in recent games. He’s recovered from the little injury he had and he looks more motivated, excited. He needed time, like everybody does, but that period is over.”
Mbappé’s improving form has seen him score five goals in his last seven games for Madrid, and he quickly recovered from a hamstring problem sustained against Atalanta in the Champions League to play Pachuca.
Ancelotti lamented the fact that injuries have meant he hasn’t been able to field his four attacking stars — Mbappé, Vinícius Júnior, Jude Bellingham and Rodrygo Goes — in the same eleven more often.
“Sometimes Rodrygo has been injured, sometimes Bellingham, they’ve played few games [together] but from what little we’ve seen they combine well,” Ancelotti said. “Sometimes Mbappé has played the left, sometimes Vinícius has played inside, or Bellingham on the left … I won’t fix a position for the four, but rather I’ll give them a lot of freedom.
“Mbappé only has to improve in his consistency, trying to do the things that only he can do, as often as possible. I don’t ask him to be very involved in the build-up play. His best characteristic is finding space and getting into the box. That’s what he needs to do more frequently.”
Ancelotti said Ferland Mendy would be available for the Sevilla game, while long-term absentee David Alaba should be competing for a place in the team by mid-January. “I think it will be a much more competitive league than in recent years,” he said, when asked about Saturday’s clash between Barça and Atlético.
“Atlético have all the resources to try fight for it. It will be entertaining until the end, and because it will be competitive, I think you can win the league with fewer than 90 points this year.”