Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappe Bag’s opening goal in the FIFA Intercontinental Cup Final

In his first appearance since recovering from a thigh injury, Kylian Mbappé found the breakthrough for Real Madrid in the FIFA Intercontinental Cup final.

Real Madrid had a quiet opening 30 minutes against Liga MX’s CF Pachuca at the Lusail Stadium. The defending Spanish and European champions managed zero shots on target until Mbappé scored the game’s opening goal in the 37th minute.

Jude Bellingham played a perfectly timed pass to Vinícius Júnior inside the box. The Brazilian fooled goalkeeper Carlos Moreno with a step over before laying it out to Mbappé. The striker made no mistake from a few meters out and sent an off-balance shot into the empty net.

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The goal is Mbappé’s 13th in a white shirt. The 25-year-old started his Real Madrid career with a goal in the UEFA Super Cup and now has another goal in his second final with Los Blancos.

The striker was a doubt to enter the match after suffering another thigh injury against Atalanta in the Champions League on 10 December. Mbappé missed Real Madrid’s La Liga clash with Rayo Vallecano at the weekend but returned to training this week and got the nod from Carlo Ancelotti.

Mbappé is no stranger to scoring at the Lusail Stadium in Qatar. The French international scored a hat-trick at the same venue in the 2022 FIFA World Cup final exactly two years ago. That night could have ended in disappointment for Mbappé, but he is well on his way to lifting his second trophy with Real Madrid.

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