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Real Madrid's defeat to Barcelona was made worse by Kylian Mbappe's unwanted offside record
Kylian Mbappe’s first El Clasico appearance for Real Madrid ended in frustration as he equalled a La Liga offside record during a crushing 4-0 defeat to Barcelona.
Mbappe’s El Clasico debut ends in disappointment
The highly anticipated showdown at the Bernabeu was meant to be a fairytale first Clasico for Mbappe, but it wasn’t the debut the Frenchman had envisioned.
Mbappe, determined to make his mark, had a few early sparks, narrowly missing goal opportunities and setting up his teammates. His best chance to score came with a well-timed chip that found the net, but the linesman’s flag quickly went up, denying Real Madrid the opener.
The France captain found himself in offside positions eight times throughout the night, tying a record held since Karim Benzema's 2018 performance against Eibar.
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Throughout the game, Real Madrid’s attacking line, especially Mbappe, struggled to time runs to stay onside, recording a shocking 12 offsides, with their eight discretions in the first half becoming their highest first-half offside count in La Liga since 2013.
Barcelona ruthless in El Clasico win
While Real Madrid’s frustrations mounted, Barcelona seized the upper hand, breaking through in the 54th minute as Robert Lewandowski scored twice in quick succession.
Youngster Lamine Yamal added a third before Raphinha put the icing on the cake for the Blaugrana, securing a comprehensive 4-0 victory.
The win adds to a sensational week for Barcelona that also saw them put four goals past Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League in another statement win.
Barcelona now top the LaLiga standings with 30 points from a possible 33 after 10 wins from 11 games. The Blaugrana have opened up a six-point gap over their closest rivals Real Madrid and will be eager to run away with the title this season after last year’s disappointments.
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