Despite a dangerous foul, the relatively light punishment is seen as a positive outcome for the French forward and his team.
Kylian Mbappé and his teammates can now breathe a sigh of relief. Despite committing a serious foul in his most recent match, the Real Madrid star has been suspended for only one game.
The incident took place last Sunday during Real Madrid’s 1–0 La Liga win over Alavés. Just four minutes after his team took the lead in the 34th minute, Mbappé lost his temper and made a dangerous tackle on opponent Antonio Blanco.
The referee initially showed him a yellow card, but after reviewing the incident on the VAR monitor, he changed the decision and issued a straight red card.
Two days later, on Tuesday, the Royal Spanish Football Federation’s disciplinary committee announced that the French forward would be suspended for just one match. As a result, he will miss only the upcoming league game against Athletic Bilbao this Sunday.
With head coach Carlo Ancelotti also serving a suspension, his son and assistant coach, Davide Ancelotti, was on the touchline. Clearly frustrated by Mbappé’s reckless challenge, Davide threw up his hands in dismay—it was the kind of tackle that could have broken Blanco’s leg.
Realizing his mistake, Mbappé apologized to Blanco after the match, and the Spanish midfielder accepted the apology.
“To be honest, the challenge was quite dangerous, but these things happen in football. Kylian apologized, and that’s what matters. There’s no need to make a big deal out of it.”
Real Madrid currently sits second in the league table with 66 points from 31 matches, four points behind league leaders Barcelona.
