1 october 2024 : Kylian Mbappé’s return from a minor hamstring injury was not enough to save defending champions Real Madrid, who suffered a 1-0 defeat to Lille in the Champions League on Wednesday.
Mbappé started as a substitute and entered the game in the 57th minute. The only goal of the match came from Canadian striker Jonathan David, who converted a penalty awarded after Eduardo Camavinga handled the ball during stoppage time in the first half. David confidently sent the ball past backup goalkeeper Andriy Lunin, who was filling in for the injured Thibaut Courtois.
This marked Real Madrid’s first Champions League loss since a 4-0 defeat to Manchester City in last season’s semifinal. Coach Carlo Ancelotti did not hold back in critiquing his team’s performance, noting, “We made a lot of errors. In the first half, we had many issues in transitions. We weren’t aggressive enough or able to create chances.” He emphasized the need for the forwards to play more vertically for better effectiveness.
Despite the setback, a positive note for Madrid was the debut of Brazil’s Endrick, who became the youngest starter for the club in the Champions League at 18 years and 73 days, surpassing the record held by Raúl González.
In other matches, Liverpool made a successful European night debut under coach Arne Slot, beating Bologna 2-0, with goals from Alexis Mac Allister and Mohamed Salah. Meanwhile, Aston Villa secured a late 1-0 win against Bayern Munich thanks to substitute Jhon Duran’s spectacular long-range goal.
Juventus triumphed 3-2 at Leipzig, even after goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio received a red card for a handball. Dusan Vlahovic scored twice for Juventus, while Benjamin Sesko netted both goals for Leipzig.
Real Madrid’s woes continued as they faced a 4-0 rout against Benfica, marking Atletico Madrid’s joint-biggest defeat in UEFA club competitions. In other matches, Atalanta won 3-0 against Shakhtar, Feyenoord edged out Girona 3-2, and Monaco earned a last-minute equalizer in a 2-2 draw at Dinamo Zagreb through a penalty from Denis Zakaria.
