"Real Madrid were awarded a spectacular amount of penalties" - Ex-Barcelona director says Mbappe's numbers this season were 'doped'

Former Barcelona director Toni Freixa shared his thoughts on Kylian Mbappe's numbers in his debut Real Madrid campaign. The Frenchman arrived at the Santiago Bernabeu on a free transfer last summer.

After a quiet start to life in the Spanish capital, the 2018 FIFA World Cup winner eventually ended his first season in Madrid colours with an impressive haul of 42 goals and four assists in 55 games across competitions.

Nevertheless, Los Blancos ended the season without major silverware, having only won the UEFA Super Cup and falling to domestic treble winners Barcelona four times, including a league double.

"Mbappe's season was better than Real Madrid's, because Real's was very bad, but it wasn't as good as expected," Freixa said on El Chiringuito de Jugones (via Noticias Minuto).

"If the best player in the world joins the team that won everything (in the 2023/24 season). ... Something went wrong here: Mbappe's fit into the team, his way of working."

He concluded:

"In the end, Mbappe achieved numbers that ... I mean, they're doped up. I already know that everyone is going to come down on me. They gave Real Madrid a spectacular number of penalties, and that tackle by Mbappe against Getafe (Alaves) was a four-game ban, and it was only one."

With 31 goals, Mbappe won his first European Golden Boot award as well as the Pichichi, but Madrid finished four points behind La Liga champions Barcelona.

How did Real Madrid striker Kylian Mbappe perform against Barcelona this season?

Los Blancos striker Kylian Mbappe (left)

As mentioned above, Kylian Mbappe netted 42 times in his debut campaign for Real Madrid. Five of those goals came in four games against Barcelona, including a hat-trick, but Madrid lost each time.

After drawing blanks in the 4-0 La Liga home loss to the eventual champions in October, Mbappe scored in the 5-2 Supercopa Espana final loss to the Blaugrana in January this year.

Mbappe also netted in the 3-2 extra time loss to Barca in the Copa del Rey final last month. He then scored a sensational hat-trick, but Hansi Flick's side survived to win 4-3 in a seven-goal La Liga thriller, which effectively ended the title race, sending Barca seven points clear at the top with three games left.

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Bhargav is a veteran sports journalist and editor at Sportskeeda, with a rich professional experience of 17 years, working for the likes of Siemens and Bombay Dyeing. An avid football and tennis follower for over three decades, Bhargav uses his vast knowledge and experience, attention to detail, an unbiased yet interesting writing style, and thorough research to craft insightful articles, which have raked in over 18 million reads so far.

Bhargav supports Italy at national level, a team steeped in tradition and history according to him. He still harbors the heartbreak from the Azzurri’s 1994 FIFA World Cup final defeat against Brazil, and protagonist-turned-antagonist from the game, ‘Divine Ponytail’ Roberto Baggio is his all-time favorite player. His favorite manager is Marcelo Lippi, who ended Italy’s 24-year wait for the World Cup trophy, winning it in 2006.

Outside Europe’s top five leagues, he follows the MLS following Lionel Messi’s move in 2023 but favors Cristiano Ronaldo in the G.O.A.T. debate. During his free time, Bhargav enjoys driving off to new places and singing.

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