Forward says his side lacked desire and could not compete at the level of their opponents
Kylian Mbappe believes Real Madrid deserved to lose their game against Benfica on Wednesday. Madrid were dumped out of the top eight of the Champions League after Jose Mourinho engineered a 4-2 defeat of his former side.
Although Mbappe opened the scoring at the half hour, Benfica equalised and then were ahead by the break. A third goal for the Portuguese side in the second half turned matters from bad to worse and while Mbappe pulled one back just four minutes later, Benfica held out, before goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin had a heroic moment in stoppage time when he went up the other end to head in a goal that secured a playoff spot for his side.
The loss means that Madrid themselves will have to play the double-legged playoff round in February.
“In football, games start at minute 0, not 45, so in the end, the defeat was deserved,” said Mbappe. “I can’t say it wasn’t deserved because we didn’t play to win this match. We didn’t play well, and they did. Benfica at home is always difficult. We knew that beforehand, and I think it was our fault.”
Manager Alvaro Arbeloa echoed his forward’s opinion.
“Clearly, today we were far from where we wanted to be, given the difficulty of the match, the demands of the opponent, the atmosphere, what was at stake for them, and what was at stake for us,” said Arbeloa.
“I think we weren’t able to perform at the level required for 90 minutes. Before coming here, we knew we had a lot of work to do, a lot to improve, and we’re aware that we still have a long way to go.
“To win these kinds of matches, you have to do many things well, not just one, and you have to do them consistently for 90 minutes.”
The playoff draws will be held on Friday but Madrid could well face Benfica again.
“We’ll see what happens, but it’s possible we’ll come back here, and if so, we’ll return with a different intention,” Mbappe said. “The first balls and the duels they win aren’t a matter of quality or tactics, but of having more desire than the opponent.”
