It wasn\u2019t easy, it wasn\u2019t comfortable, and it wasn\u2019t straightforward \u2014 but Real Madrid have managed to extinguish a growing crisis and close out 2025 with three straight victories. After back-to-back defeats to Celta de Vigo and Manchester City, Real won 2-1 at Alav\u00e9s before prevailing 3-2 against third-tier CF Talavera in the Copa del Rey. Los Blancos took the lead before halftime after the hosts were deemed to have handled the ball in their penalty box, with Kylian Mbapp\u00e9 stepping up and slotting home from the penalty spot. They doubled their lead shortly after as Mbapp\u00e9 zig-zagged through an array of opponents and fired a low cross towards the near post, which was deflected into the back of the net for an own goal.<\/p>\n
Talavera would send their stadium into pandemonium after pulling one back in the 80th minute, but Mbapp\u00e9 would put the game to rest in the 88th minute by launching a shot from outside the penalty arc into the back of the net. He was back at it again in the following match, doubling the lead from the penalty spot to secure a 2-0 win against Sevilla. Real Madrid manager Xabi Alonso has survived \u2013 for now \u2013 and once again, he\u2019s done so thanks to the individual brilliance of his French superstar.<\/p>\n
Born and raised in Paris, Mbapp\u00e9 made the move to AS Monaco in 2013, where, after leading the principality side to their first Ligue 1 title in 17 years, he returned to his hometown and joined Paris Saint-Germain. It didn\u2019t take long for him to make his \u20ac180 million price tag look like an absolute bargain, with Mbapp\u00e9 racking up 256 goals and 110 assists in 308 appearances for Les Parisiens, becoming a constant headache for opposing coaches like Paulo Fonseca and Thomas Gr\u00f8nnemark<\/a>. At the international level, he has led France to the gold medal in the 2018 FIFA World Cup Final and the silver in the 2022 World Cup Final, emerging as a role model for burgeoning young center forwards like MLS Next Pro Golden Boot winner Jason Shokalook.<\/p>\n \u201cHonestly, I think that one of the things that I see and that I can take away from Mbapp\u00e9 is his calmness in high pressure moments,\u201d stated Shokalook in an exclusive Managing Madrid interview. \u201cI think that a big one was in the 2022 FIFA World Cup Final between France and Argentina \u2013 the crowd is going crazy, everyone\u2019s screaming, and you can see that he\u2019s just so composed in his own mind and in his body,\u201d added Shokalook, who signed a professional MLS contract with Chicago Fire\u2019s first team this month.<\/p>\n \u201cHe looks very relaxed but tense, and that\u2019s something that\u2019s super inspirational. In my career, I really hope to be put into a lot of high-pressure moments, and for the team to count on me like Mbapp\u00e9. He\u2019s just an amazing finisher and is relentless with his runs in behind, and even if he scores twice, he\u2019s not going to stop there and just relentless with the runs in behind in how he goes, and if he scores 2 goals, he\u2019s not gonna stop there \u2013 he wants to score 3, 4 or 5 goals, which is very inspiring for me.\u201d<\/p>\n It was only a matter of time before Mbapp\u00e9 made the move to Real Madrid, and in 2023, he did just that. But despite a superb rookie campaign that saw him edge Robert Lewandowski to the Pichichi award and score a whopping 44 goals and 5 assists in 59 appearances, Mbapp\u00e9 was the butt of jokes rather than the recipient of well-deserved acclaim \u2013 unlike his former club PSG, who had won their maiden Champions League trophy \u2013 Mbapp\u00e9 had failed to win a single major trophy in his debut season in Spain.<\/p>\n This season, however, Mbapp\u00e9 has somehow gotten even more deadly in the final third. He\u2019s racked up a barely believable 28 goals and 4 assists in 23 appearances, and his 17 goals put him six ahead of second-placed FerranTorres in the LaLiga scoring charts. Whenever it seems that Alonso is on the hot seat, Mbapp\u00e9 has stepped up and delivered for his Basque manager. After Real lost 5-2 at Atl\u00e9tico Madrid, Mbapp\u00e9 stepped up with a hat trick at Kairat Almaty. When Real Madrid found themselves in desperate need of a win after a loss at Liverpool and stalemates at Rayo Vallecano and Elche, Mbapp\u00e9 delivered with four goals in a 4-3 win at Olympiacos, before following that up with a penalty equalizer at Girona and a brace and an assist in a 3-0 vs. Athletic Club.<\/p>\n