Doubts are not usually raised about Kylian Mbappé’s ability to score, but his numbers from penalty kicks with Real Madrid in the Spanish Football League reveal a less convincing side of the French star’s career.
The most recent failure came against Real Betis, when his kick was blocked by goalkeeper Alvaro Vallés at the “La Cartuja” stadium. This mistake was not isolated, as Mbappe missed five of the 24 penalty kicks he took while wearing the Royal Club shirt, that is, a failure rate of 20.8 percent, without counting the penalty kicks.
The percentage seems high when compared to the most prominent former penalty kick takers at Real Madrid. Cristiano Ronaldo missed 13 kicks out of 92, a rate of 14.1 percent, while Sergio Ramos missed only one kick out of 23, a rate of 4.3 percent.
The problem is not limited to his experience in Madrid. Throughout his career, Mbappe missed 16 kicks out of 81, a rate of 19.7 percent. He also had a crisis of confidence during his first season with the team, after missing almost two consecutive kicks against Liverpool and Athletic Bilbao.
Despite the numbers, Mbappe’s position as the first penalty kick taker does not seem threatened. Coach Jose Mourinho defended his star, saying: “When a player steps forward to take a penalty kick, we all step forward with him.”
Mbappe is still the most prominent scorer and the strongest attacking presence in Real Madrid, but the short distance between the penalty point and the goal has turned into a repeated test. While competitors chase him in the goal race, the numbers reveal that penalty kicks have become one of the few weaknesses in his arsenal.
