Manager insists the club No 10 not pressured to win the trophy after Paris Saint-Germain success
Xabi Alonso has said Kylian Mbappe’s superb form is a huge positive for the club as they prepare for their Champions League group-stage opener against Marseille on Tuesday.
Mbappe has scored four goals in four games for Madrid in La Liga so far, most recently in the 2-1 win over Real Sociedad at Anoeta.
With the player firing consistently, Alonso will have high hopes of winning his first trophy for the club as a manager this season, after Madrid finished trophyless last term. The Spaniard said he had expected Mbappe to start the campaign strongly.
“I was optimistic,” said Alonso. “Kylian’s Club World Cup was a bit light because he had gastroenteritis. We’re getting to know each other. Now you see the player he is.
“He understands football. We need him, and we need the collective quality of the group.”
He revealed that the France captain was also a leader in the dressing room and would serve as a model for the others.
“With his personality, his experience, the influence he has on the rest, he’s one of them [the leaders],” said Alonso. “When that group is united and strong, the others know where they have to look.”
Alonso also dismissed suggestions that Mbappe is feeling pressure to deliver a first Champions League title at Real Madrid, after his former side Paris Saint-Germain won it last season right after he left.
“He’s not anxious, no,” said Alonso. “We all feel that this is a project which is just starting, and one of the objectives at Madrid is winning the Champions League.
“Let’s hope it’s sooner rather than later. But we haven’t spoken about May yet.”
