Real Madrid secured their first victory of the new season on Sunday night, Monday morning Spanish time, with a win over Milan in a friendly. Los Blancos trialled a new formation, but manager Carlo Ancelotti could not escape the transfer talk.
The Italian received chants of ‘Mbappe’ while taking a photo on the touchline, as the Frenchman’s transfer drama continues to rumble on.
Real Madrid fans chanting Mbappe to Ancelotti ahead of their pre-season friendly tonight.
— EiF (@EiFSoccer) July 24, 2023
Meanwhile in the press conference, he was asked both about their current star in Jude Bellingham, and the potential future star signing in Kylian Mbappe.
“He is a fantastic player. Very important. A complete midfielder, who has a lot of intensity and moves very well without the ball. He is different from the other midfielders we have. He looks to find free space, and he adds something else to this squad, that has an extraordinary quality.”
“(Smiles) I think I have answered all the questions,” Ancelotti said, avoiding getting into ‘the Mbappe question’.
— Hala Madrid (@HalaMad67519111) July 24, 2023
For Ancelotti, he is unlikely to escape those questions until Mbappe decides on his future.
One advantage of the new formation that Ancelotti is trialling with Bellingham at ten, and Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo Goes up front, is that if Mbappe were to join late in the window, then in theory Mbappe could slot into Rodrygo’s place. Whether Ancelotti would want to drop Rodrygo is another matter, but he would not have to rule out this shape entirely.
