Kylian Mbappe’s return from injury could hardly have gone much better for Real Madrid. After days of noise around his physical condition, the French star reminded everyone what actually matters, he is back, he looks sharp, and he is already deciding games again.
According to Mundo Deportivo, Mbappe started for France against Brazil, played 66 minutes, and marked his comeback with the opening goal in a 1-0 win. He he had already returned from injury a week earlier with short appearances against Manchester City and Atletico Madrid before this first international start.
The goal itself was pure Mbappe. In the 32nd minute, he attacked the space with that trademark power and then finished with an excellent chipped effort after an assist from Ousmane Dembele, with the move starting from a Casemiro turnover.
From a Madrid perspective, that is the biggest possible encouragement. When Mbappe returns, he does not usually need a long settling-in period. He tends to come back looking like himself almost immediately, and that is exactly what this performance suggested.
Just as important was the game management. Didier Deschamps took him off just after the hour mark, which felt like a sensible way to build him back up without overloading him too soon. For Madrid fans, that part may be nearly as welcome as the goal.
There had been plenty of chatter this week about his knee and even confusion around the medical handling of the issue, but the player had already pushed back on that discussion. What matters now is he is back on the pitch and looking to contribute.
A fully fit and firing Mbappe makes Real Madrid much more potent than they normally are and they will need the Frenchman at his best against Bayern Munich, who have been one of the best teams in Europe so far this season.
It remains to be seen how France and Real Madrid go about managing his minutes. He still has a long season ahead of him including the World Cup and let’s wait and see how things play out.
