Real Madrid: Kylian Mbappé missing in action, Álvaro Arbeloa comes to his defense

Madrid, Spain – With the Champions League playoff return leg against Benfica only hours away, the spotlight at Valdebebas has fallen squarely on Kylian Mbappé’s sudden goal drought. The French forward has drawn blanks in back-to-back matches—last Tuesday’s 1-1 draw in Lisbon and Saturday’s damaging 2-1 league defeat at Osasuna—leaving questions swirling about his role and confidence inside the area.

Addressing reporters on Tuesday, club legend Álvaro Arbeloa dismissed suggestions that Mbappé should be anchored as a conventional number nine. “Should he be seen more as a true number nine? I don’t think his problem is about scoring goals,” Arbeloa said. “It’s neither about scoring nor the way he does it. He makes decisions on the pitch, and if there’s one thing to highlight about him, it’s his intelligence. He knows exactly where to be. Sometimes he needs to create chances inside the box, other times outside. But Kylian knows perfectly well what he has to do out there, and just looking at his stats is enough to see he does it superbly.”

The 180-minute scoring lull is a rare dip for the summer acquisition, yet Arbeloa urged patience, insisting the forward’s movement and decision-making remain elite. Madrid will hope the public backing translates into an immediate response at the Bernabéu, where progression to the quarter-finals hangs in the balance.