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• Bellingham hails 'big player' Mbappe in Stuttgart triumph

  Jude Bellingham lauded yet another landmark moment in the career of Kylian Mbappe after the Frenchman marked his Champions League debut for Real Madrid with a goal. 

  Mbappe, who has five goals in his first seven games for his new club, opened the scoring in Los Blancos' 3-1 win over Stuttgart on Tuesday. 

  The 25-year-old's effort saw him net his 49th Champions League goal, with only Robert Lewandowski (61) scoring more in the competition since Mbappe's debut. 

  He also became the second Frenchman to score on his debut for Madrid in the competition, joining Christian Karembeu who netted against Bayer Leverkusen in 1998. 

  Bellingham explained how quickly Mbappe has settled into life in the Spanish capital, saying: "He's going to be a huge player for us, this season and beyond.

  "He always delivers so far, it's a lot of pressure coming to a club like Madrid, but he's taken to it really easily and the lads love him already."

  The encounter against Stuttgart also marked Bellingham's return to the side after the England midfielder missed the last four games with a muscle injury. 

  Upon his return, Bellingham won more tackles (two) and accumulated the highest pass accuracy (93.3%) of anyone in the Los Blancos side. 

  Across all competitions last year, Bellingham made 42 appearances, notching 23 goals and laying on a further 13 assists in his debut year at the Santiago Bernabeu. 

  Having also starred for England at Euro 2024, the 21-year-old was excited to be back out on the pitch and is aiming for more success this term. 

  "Three-and-a-half weeks [out] has been difficult. I've not been injured a lot in my career, so whenever it happens, I'm a bit impatient," he said.

  “But this time I wanted to take it slowly and agreed this would be the game I came back in – maybe off the bench – but I was buzzing to start.

  "In the first half I left it all out there, I was that excited and all over the place, just wanting to create and get in the box.

  “Second half, I probably just ran out of a bit of steam, so I stayed a little bit deeper, but I'm getting used to being back, finding my feet again and I'm sure I'll be fine this season."

• Rabiot seals Ligue 1 return with Marseille transfer

  Adrien Rabiot's wait to find a new club is finally over after his move to Marseille was officially confirmed on Tuesday. 

  Rabiot joins the Ligue 1 club following his departure from Juventus at the end of last season and has signed a two-year contract with Roberto De Zerbi's side. 

  The 29-year-old was reportedly of interest to several Premier League clubs, including Manchester United, but the France international has opted to return to his homeland. 

  Rabiot offers the French outfit an experienced option in midfield, having made 163 Ligue 1 appearances during his seven-year stint with Paris Saint-Germain. 

  He won 18 major titles during his time with the Parisiens before making the move to Juventus in 2019. 

  The Frenchman appeared 212 times in all competitions for the Serie A giants, netting 22 times and laying on a further 15 assists across his five-year stay in Turin. 

  In his final season with Juventus, Rabiot made 31 league appearances, with his 39 tackles won a total only bettered by Bremer (42) and Manuel Locatelli (43) in their squad. 

  Rabiot becomes the latest addition to a Marseille side that has started the new campaign with 10 points from their opening four games under new head coach De Zerbi. 

• Ancelotti lauds 'unique' Endrick after Champions League debut

  Carlo Ancelotti hailed Endrick's display in Real Madrid's 3-1 win over Stuttgart in the Champions League, saying he has unique gifts that set him apart. 

  Endrick emerged from the bench to notch Madrid's final goal of a nervy encounter, striking from distance and beating Alexander Nubel in the bottom corner. 

  The Brazilian's effort saw him become the youngest South American player to score on his Champions League debut, aged 18 years and 58 days.

  Endrick is also the youngest to score on his Los Blancos debut in the competition, overtaking Javier Portillo in 2002 (19 years, 355 days).

  "He is able to do things that no-one can think of," Ancelotti said. 

  "He has the gift that strikers dream of, the gift of being very effective, decisive.

  "You can see that he has something special, something I have never seen. And he has such a strong and very fast shooting.

  "Endrick had courage because it was the last ball of the game.

  "The best solution was to take advantage of the three against one, with Vinicius and Rodrygo open in the wings, but he did it very well, even though it was perhaps the most complicated solution."

  But the reigning champions did not have it all their own way at the Santiago Bernabeu, with their German opposition creating several opportunities on the night. 

  Stuttgart ended the match with 17 shots, seven of which were on target, while also producing an expected goals (xG) tally of 1.94 compared to Madrid's 2.61. 

  However, they were thwarted by the hands of Thibaut Courtois, with the Belgian making six saves throughout the contest. 

  Ancelotti was pleased with his side's start to the defence of their European crown, but said improvements were needed if they were to secure a 16th Champions League title. 

  "If anyone thinks that winning games is easy, they are wrong," Ancelotti said. 

  “I have coached more than 200 games in the Champions League and I can't remember a game without suffering.

  "Nobody knows better than Real Madrid what it's like to win a Champions League with suffering.

  "We are still trying to find our best version. It's a work in progress."