Real Madrid began their UEFA Champions League campaign with a hard-fought and controversial 2-1 victory over Olympique de Marseille at the Santiago Bernabéu. Two penalties from star striker Kylian Mbappé secured the win, continuing Los Blancos’ perfect record against their French opponents.
The match, which saw the Champions League debut of new Real Madrid coach Xabi Alonso, was full of drama from the start. Real Madrid was dealt an early blow when new signing Trent Alexander-Arnold was forced off with an injury just five minutes into the game.
Despite dominating the opening minutes, Real Madrid was stunned in the 22nd minute when Timothy Weah, assisted by Mason Greenwood, fired a shot past goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois to give Marseille an unexpected lead.
The hosts responded swiftly. In the 28th minute, a clumsy foul by Geoffrey Kondogbia on Rodrygo resulted in a penalty. Mbappé stepped up and clinically converted to level the score.
The second half was marked by two significant moments of drama. First, Real Madrid found themselves down to 10 men in the 72nd minute when captain Dani Carvajal, who had come on for the injured Alexander-Arnold, was shown a straight red card for headbutting Marseille goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli during a corner.
Despite the numerical disadvantage, Real Madrid was awarded a second penalty in the 81st minute after a handball by Facundo Medina while challenging substitute Vinicius Junior. Mbappé took the penalty and, despite Rulli getting a hand to it, the shot found the back of the net to seal the win.
The victory, which also makes Real Madrid the first team in Champions League history to reach 200 wins, was a hard-fought one. Mbappé, who has now scored 50 goals in 64 matches for the club, was named Man of the Match. While Real Madrid celebrates a winning start, Marseille will be left to reflect on a match where they had 56% of the possession but couldn’t convert it into a result.
