On November 24, 2018, Real Madrid suffered a 3-0 defeat at Eibar in La Liga. Karim Benzema was flagged offside seven times, tying the league record set by Jonathas de Jesus in 2015. Fast forward nearly six years and Kylian Mbappe, considered Benzema’s long-term replacement, set a new record with eight offsides in El Clasico. Despite having previously bagged six goals in four matches against Barcelona, Mbappe’s first El Clasico performance was marred by poor timing and profligacy, but also showed tantalising moments of brilliance.
Madrid’s strategy for the game was clear from the outset. Ball play was firmly with Mbappe, Vinicius Jr and Jude Bellingham, with Madrid’s midfielders providing direct support with quick passes. Success, however, hinged on well-timed runs and accurate finishing. Mbappe, however, started on the wrong foot with two offsides within the first 90 seconds. Despite this shaky start, he showed desire to contribute and played a key part in the overall strategy of the game, despite his struggles with timing.
The game’s third offside came when Mbappe failed to time his run correctly off a pass from team-mate Camavinga. He found himself in a promising position between Barcelona’s centre-backs, but unfortunately began his run too soon, leading to another offside call. The most glaring offside offense came in the 19th minute, a mistake quickly followed by another in the 25th minute. Despite these missteps, Mbappe managed to figure out his timing on the half-hour mark, scoring a masterful goal that was ultimately ruled out after a VAR check.
In the second half of the match, Madrid attempted to build on their dominance with Mbappe making a promising run behind Cubarsi onto a pass from Vazquez. This moment of optimism, however, was quickly extinguished as Barcelona exploited weaknesses in Madrid’s pressing to storm into the lead with two quick goals from Robert Lewandowski. Madrid found themselves 2-0 down, unable to make their dominance count.
Although Mbappe’s involvement in the game grew, his struggles with the offside trap resurfaced. A glaring example of this was seen in the 66th minute when he received a pass while offside, finished the move by shooting into Pena’s far corner, but was ruled offside. Across the match, Mbappe was flagged offside eight times, symptomatic of a poor performance and visible lack of chemistry with his team.
When assessing Mbappe’s performance, it is hard to ignore his lack of confidence, the mounting pressure from the occasion, and the need for better synergy with his new team-mates. Moreover, his struggles are a longstanding issue, having been caught offside in seven of his nine La Liga games before the El Clasico. Even though Madrid have been caught offside only 24 times overall this season, with 17 contributed by Mbappe, his future success necessitates a drastic improvement in this area. Playing for Madrid was his dream, but as he steps into this new chapter, the hard work is only just beginning.
