Carlo Ancelotti insists Real Madrid must be patient with Kylian Mbappe following his lacklustre home debut in the 3-0 win over Real Valladolid.

Mbappe failed to find the net on his first appearance at Santiago Bernabeu since his blockbuster move from Paris Saint-Germain, despite registering joint game-high tallies of three shots on target and eight touches in the opposing penalty box.

Madrid took until the 50th minute to break through against Valladolid courtesy of Federico Valverde's vicious free-kick, while substitutes Brahim Diaz and Endrick climbed off the bench to seal the victory late on.

Mbappe was substituted in the 86th minute, but Ancelotti leapt to the defence of the France captain, who he maintains needs time to gel with his new team-mates.

"Mbappe is a spectacular striker, very quick, he moves very well without the ball," the Italian told reporters at his post-match press conference.

"In this position, he is going to score as he has always scored. He doesn't need to play on the left or in the centre. In the end, he will score goals. Wait and see."

Ancelotti also saluted the impact of his substitutes in securing Madrid's first LaLiga win of the new season.

"The taste of a win is always good. When we win a game, I have to be happy, taking into account the difficulties we had, especially in the first half when we were slow and soft," Ancelotti told a press conference on Sunday.

"We were better after the break, with much more mobility and speed in possession. I am very happy for those who come off the bench and take advantage of the few minutes they have.

"Setting the line-up is always complicated, it bothers me, it makes me a bit sad, even though it's my responsibility. I'm the one who has to choose the 11 players that start the match.

"Bearing in mind that in this period of the season, in the heat, it is expected that players get tired. So, it would be right that when a player is tired, he should raise his hand and ask to be replaced. But in my 40 years in football, it has never happened.

"So, it is up to me, the coach, to pick out the ones I think are tired. I think the players have to be more responsible with that. I say it here because I have said it to them privately. I have a lot of resources to use in this squad."

 

 

 

Bayern Munich head coach Vincent Kompany praised his side's mentality after they came from behind to beat Wolfsburg in their Bundesliga opener on Sunday.

An 82nd-minute goal from Serge Gnabry secured a 3-2 win at Wolfsburg and handed Kompany, who replaced Thomas Tuchel after their disappointing third-place finish last season, a winning start in the Bundesliga.

Bayern took the lead thanks to Jamal Musiala's 19th-minute opener, but started the second half in shocking fashion as they gave away a penalty just after the restart and then made a defensive error that enabled Wolfsburg to turn matters around.

However, after an own goal from Jakub Kaminski, Harry Kane teed up Gnabry to grab a late winner and seal all three points.

"I enjoyed it, it was my first Bundesliga game as a coach," Kompany said.

"The first half was dominant, as it should be. We didn't concede any chances. The second half wasn't good at the beginning, we conceded two quick goals. The third point is that our mentality was right at the end, and that's why we won the game.

"Mistakes happen, the important thing is how the team reacts. That took a while in the second half. Thomas Muller and Kingsley Coman came in with the right mentality and the tempo came back.

"At the end of the second half, we had a lot of courage to win the game. It wasn't perfect, but we'll keep going."

Joshua Kimmich said Bayern's reaction was good in the second half.

"It was extremely difficult, the pitch was very dry, so the game stalled at times. Perhaps it wasn't always presentable," he said.

"But in the end I'm happy that we won it. The mentality was right."

Bayern are now undefeated in their past 13 Bundesliga openers (W11 D2) – a new record for a team in the competition's history.

Juventus have confirmed the signing of winger Nicolas Gonzalez from Fiorentina in a reported €32 million move.

Gonzalez finished last season with 14 goal contributions in Serie A as Fiorentina finished eighth and reached the final of the Europa Conference League for the second year running.

The forward also helped Argentina win the Copa America in the off-season, and on Sunday, completed his switch to Turin.

Speaking of Gonzalez's addition, as well as the impending signing of Francisco Conceicao from Porto, new Juve boss Thiago Motta said: "They are strong players which is why they will come to our squad. Every player that arrives will give us a big hand to be competitive until the end.

"That is the case for those already here and those who will arrive."

Motta's team started their Serie A campaign with a 3-0 win over Cesc Fabregas' Como last week, and face Hellas Verona on Monday.

"We remain with our feet on the ground after the first day of the championship," Motta said on Sunday.

"Now we are on the second day, we face a team that is in good form after their victory against a team that is a serious candidate for the Scudetto.

"We played at home against Como, which was a good performance and a good result for us. Tomorrow I expect a different story and we have to be ready for everything.

"You look at it from the outside but from the inside my life is beautiful. I wake up early with great energy and enthusiasm to come to training.

"I find myself with fantastic people who have that same enthusiasm. I find myself with guys who arrive with a huge desire to improve."

Nottingham Forest have completed the signing of David Carmo from Porto for £10m (€11.7m), with the defender going out on loan to Olympiacos for the season.

The Portuguese-born defender, who represents Angola at international level, spent the second half of last season in Athens.

Carmo joins on a five-year deal and is Forest's ninth signing of the summer transfer window.

He began his career at Braga before moving to Porto for €20m in the summer of 2022, but only managed 27 appearances before being loaned to Olympiacos, who are owned by Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis, in January.

Meanwhile, reports emerged on Sunday that Forest's move to sign Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah had broken down.

Nuno Espirito Santo's team are, however, rumoured to be in talks with Feyenoord over Mexico forward Santiago Gimenez, who scored 23 Eredivisie goals last term.

Liverpool still have "a lot to prove" despite maintaining their strong start to the Premier League season, so says new boss Arne Slot.

Goals from Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah in Sunday's 2-0 win over Brentford continued the Dutchman's perfect record as Reds head coach following their opening-day win over Ipswich Town last week.

Slot's side are yet to concede a goal this term, scoring four in return, as he became the first Liverpool boss since April 1991 to win his first two league matches in charge.

Yet Slot knows it is early days as he aims to walk in the shoes of the legendary Jurgen Klopp.

He told BBC Sport: "The fans loved to see the team playing really well but they also loved to see the team working very hard.

"I liked what I saw so if I like it then mostly the fans like it.

"Again we won against Ipswich, won against Brentford. Two good teams but I am not expecting them to be in the top six in the upcoming year so still a lot to prove for us in the upcoming weeks and months."

Liverpool were frustrated in their attempts to extend their lead against the Bees by visiting goalkeeper Mark Flekken, who made six saves, but Slot was quick to point out the defensive solidity shown by his team, who limited Brentford to just 0.36 expected goals (xG).

"Most importantly, we did not concede much," the former Feyenoord coach said.

"The only big chance we conceded was a set piece and that is always so difficult when you play Brentford. They can threaten in many ways but one is certainly set pieces, and we controlled that quite well apart from that one moment."

Slot also praised many of his players for returning from their holidays in fine physical condition, and he thinks that has been one of the main factors in Liverpool achieving two wins out of two so far.

"The players came back after three weeks of holiday and in most cases two weeks before the start of the games but they came back really strong physically", he said.

"Compliment to the players for how they came back and, like I have said, we haven't changed much compared to the former regime, so it is not so difficult for them to start playing again. That was a very positive thing."

Slot's biggest test as Liverpool coach comes next week, with the Reds heading to Old Trafford to face Manchester United.

Virgil van Dijk insists there is "no reason" for him to start looking elsewhere from Liverpool, despite his contract at Anfield now running into its final year.

The Reds made it two wins from two under new head coach Arne Slot as Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah were on target in a 2-0 victory over Brentford.

Van Dijk made his 100th Premier League appearance for Liverpool at Anfield, and celebrated the milestone with a second clean sheet in as many matches.

The skipper has less than a year remaining on his existing contract with the club he joined from Southampton in January 2018.

Nevertheless, he maintains he is very relaxed about the situation, while instead focusing on evolving under his new boss.

"I am very calm," he told Sky Sports. "The thing is, I want to play the best season I can. I want to be important and stay important to the club. Then, we will see.

"Everything happens for a reason, but for now, there have been no changes in my situation. I am very calm about it and there is no reason for me to start thinking about something else. I have a whole season left to play.

"We have to - I won't say forget about the Jurgen period - but that is in the past, and we had an amazing time, and now it is a time for the new boss to hopefully be successful.

"Obviously, [I have] that extra responsibility because I know the players inside and out. But I am here for him [Slot].

"I told him that from day one, and I will help them and the backroom staff. I want to be successful, and we are in the same boat. There is extra responsibility there."

Alexis Mac Allister is pleased with the development of Liverpool so far under new coach Arne Slot, but knows there is still work to do.

Mac Allister helped Liverpool to their second straight win to start the 2024-25 Premier League season, as the Reds swatted Brentford aside 2-0 at Anfield.

Slot became the first Liverpool boss to win his opening two league matches since April 1991 in the process.

And Mac Allister, who was integral to much of Liverpool's play, believes Liverpool are swiftly adapting to their new coach's approach.

He told Sky Sports: "We played a fantastic game.

"The team gave everything from the first minute which you could see and it was a good game. In possession and without the ball it was good so we are really pleased."

Liverpool were in dominant form for much of Sunday's encounter, mustering 19 shots for an accumulative 2.65 expected goals to Brentford's 0.36 xG.

But Mac Allister knows there is still more to come from the Reds, who are one of four teams to have won their opening two matches.

"We know there is still room for improvement," Mac Allister said.

"In the transition sometimes we need to be patient but instead we are quite direct but we are in that transition [towards that style]. Everyone is working hard to get into Arne's ideas."

Slot's biggest test so far as Liverpool coach arrives next Sunday in the form of Manchester United at Old Trafford, and Mac Allister is aware of the enormity of the fixture for both players and supporters.

"We know against Man Utd it is a derby, it is very important for the club and for us. We will prepare during the week and do our best to win that game," he added.

Luke Williams feels Swansea City "squandered the chance" to take all three points in the South Wales derby, as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Cardiff City.

The Swans took a 10th-minute lead through academy graduate Liam Cullen, who volleyed home from close range after Ethan Horvath parried Ronald's initial effort.

However, they were pegged back 11 minutes from time when substitutes Ollie Tanner and Callum Robinson combined, with the latter ensuring a share of the spoils.

Tempers flared late on at the Swansea.com Stadium, with Cardiff boss Erol Bulut sent off for refusing to hand the ball back and his involvement in confrontations with Jay Fulton and Kyle Naughton.

Swansea had won five of the six previous league meetings between the sides on home soil, and Williams was left frustrated after his side failed to convert their general control of proceedings into a second goal.

"I think it was a very cagey game," he told Sky Sports. "The first half, we were probably the better team and deserved our lead at half-time, but the second half was a lot more even.

"I think if we'd scored the second goal, we would have taken the game away from them, but at 1-0, there is always that jeopardy.

"We squandered the chance today. It is frustrating as it is a huge game, and we know what it means. But we didn't get that second goal and then, as a coach, you probably fear the worst and really, we got what we deserved.

"On the whole, we defended well, but we didn't for one action, and the ball ended up in the back of the net. We switched off for one moment and got punished."

Meanwhile, Cardiff finally got off the mark in a season that began with back-to-back defeats against Sunderland and Burnley, in which they conceded seven goals without reply.

"We knew it would be a passionate game," Bluebirds assistant Omer Riza said. "We've worked really hard today and have ended up with a draw and, overall, we are happy.

"Going 1-0 down early meant today was always difficult, but we stuck to our guns. In the second half, we had more intent, pressed better, and we always felt our subs would be important today.

On red card, he added: "There was a challenge that frustrated Erol, he was pulled onto the pitch by one of their players and the red card is a bit harsh."

Endrick scored his first Real Madrid goal as Carlo Ancelotti's side claimed their first win of the LaLiga season after beating Real Valladolid 3-0.

Federico Valverde and Brahim Diaz were also on target for Los Blancos, who struck three times in the second half despite a generally lacklustre display at Santiago Bernabeu.

After a goalless first half, Madrid broke the deadlock within five minutes of the restart, as Valverde thumping a vicious 25-yard free-kick through the Valladolid wall and beyond goalkeeper Karl Hein.

The reigning LaLiga champions had to wait until the 88th minute to establish breathing space with substitute Diaz latching onto Eder Militao's long ball and slotting home.

Endrick, who also climbed off the bench, added gloss to the scoreline deep when he rounded off a swift counter in the sixth minute of stoppage time.

The teenage dream comes true for Endrick

Entering the contest as an 86th-minute substitute, Endrick took just 10 minutes to announce himself to Santiago Bernabeu with his new side's third goal.

At 18 years and 35 days old, the Brazil international became the youngest Madrid player to score on his LaLiga debut in the 21st century, and the first foreign player to achieve the feat overall.

His effort was provided by Diaz, who scored and assisted in a single match in any competition across Europe's top five leagues as a substitute for the first time in his career (207 appearances).

Los Blancos have now won each of their last six league meetings with Valladolid without conceding, while their opponents have lost on four successive trips to the Spanish capital for the first time since a run of six in November 2012.

Liverpool boss Arne Slot made himself at home at Anfield as goals from Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah secured a 2-0 victory over Brentford.

After winning by the same scoreline away at Ipswich Town last week, Slot saw his team dominate much of Sunday’s encounter to keep up their perfect record to start the 2024-25 Premier League season.

Slot waited just 13 minutes for his first home game to spark into life – Diogo Jota leading a rapid counter-attack from a Brentford corner before laying it off to Diaz, who lashed in beyond Mark Flekken to mark his 100th Reds appearance in style.

Flekken and Nathan Collins combined to keep Liverpool at bay in the second half, while Brentford – who were again without Ivan Toney – went close through Kristoffer Ajer at the other end.

However, Liverpool’s dominance finally told when Diaz turned provider for the Reds’ second, which was expertly guided home by Salah with 20 minutes remaining.

Cody Gakpo’s deflected effort struck the crossbar late on, as the Reds joined Manchester City, Brighton and Arsenal on two wins from as many matches.

Data Debrief: Slot makes himself at home

Slot is the first Liverpool manager to win his first two league matches in charge since Graeme Souness in April 1991. 

Stretching back to last season, Liverpool have now scored in each of their last six league games, scoring 15 goals during that run.

Liverpool boss Arne Slot made himself at home at Anfield as goals from Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah secured a 2-0 victory over Brentford.

After winning by the same scoreline away at Ipswich Town last week, Slot saw his team dominate much of Sunday’s encounter to keep up their perfect record to start the 2024-25 Premier League season.

Slot waited just 13 minutes for his first home game to spark into life – Diogo Jota leading a rapid counter-attack from a Brentford corner before laying it off to Diaz, who lashed in beyond Mark Flekken to mark his 100th Reds appearance in style.

 Flekken and Nathan Collins combined to keep Liverpool at bay in the second half, while Brentford – who were again without Ivan Toney – went close through Kristoffer Ajer at the other end.

However, Liverpool’s dominance finally told when Diaz turned provider for the Reds’ second, which was expertly guided home by Salah with 20 minutes remaining.

Cody Gakpo’s deflected effort struck the crossbar late on, as the Reds joined Manchester City, Brighton and Arsenal on two wins from as many matches.

Data Debrief: 

Jota has contributed to goals in his last 3 games in the Premier League (2 goals, 1 assist).

Slot is the first Liverpool manager to win his first two league matches in charge since Graeme Souness in April 1991. 

Stretching back to last season, Liverpool have now scored in each of their last six league games, scoring 15 goals during that run.

Noni Madueke believes his link-up with Cole Palmer is perfectly balanced after he set him up for a hat-trick in their 6-2 thrashing of Wolves.

Enzo Maresca earned his first Premier League win thanks to Madueke's 14-minute hat-trick, after Matheus Cunha and Jorgen Strand Larsen had cancelled out Nicolas Jackson and Palmer's goals in the first half. New signing Joao Felix then rounded off a superb display for the Blues with 10 minutes remaining.

It is the fifth time that a player has assisted each goal for a team-mate's hat-trick in the Premier League, and Madueke was pleased with how well they complimented each other on Sunday.

"It is unbelievable. He is cold, and I am fire, so it mixes well," Madueke told PLP.

"He has the ability to always play a pass at the right time. I like to get the ball in space, beat people and make things happen, so luckily today it worked.

"The first [goal] was a bit lucky. Second one was all Cole Palmer; two brilliant passes, with the weight of pass I just had to step onto the ball and score.

"I'm made up for the hat-trick, but more made up we won the game."

Madueke was the subject of ire from the home fans after posting a now-deleted Instagram post with a less-than-complimentary opinion about the city of Wolverhampton.

"I just want to apologise to everyone that I might have offended," he added. "It is just a human mistake, an accident.

"It wasn't meant to be out on my socials like that. I'm sure Wolverhampton is a nice town, and I'm sorry."

Maresca is the first manager in Premier League history to see his team score six goals in his first away game in the competition. Despite being pleased by the emphatic nature of the win, Maresca admitted there were still improvements to be made.

"The performance was good. I think the first half was not a complete performance, we started well in the first 10 to 15 minutes, we scored a goal and had two or three more chances," he told Sky Sports.

"Then we lost a few easy balls. When you want to build from behind you cannot allow yourself to lose easy balls, otherwise you concede set pieces and counter-attacks. You need to be more accurate. Overall, the performance was good."

Meanwhile, Wolves sit at the bottom of the early standings having failed to win their first two games, stretching their losing run to five matches in the Premier League.

After a bright first-half performance that twice saw Wolves come from behind to level the score, Gary O'Neil was left frustrated with the easy nature of Chelsea's goals in the second half.

"We gave Chelsea a lot of help, so there is an awful lot I need to fix," O'Neil told BBC Sport.

"They were unacceptable [mistakes] from us. I am all for positivity and when the lads do well, they know they have done well, but from all of us as a group, to concede those three goals as we do is unacceptable."

Eddie Howe was "very grateful" to see a late Bournemouth winner disallowed against Newcastle United, acknowledging he could not initially see any issue with Dango Ouattara's goal.

A controversial encounter on Sunday ended in a 1-1 draw after a stoppage-time effort from Ouattara was overturned following a VAR review.

The officials decided the ball had struck Ouattara's arm, rather than his head, from a right-wing corner, although referee David Coote did not visit the pitchside monitor to assess the incident.

The decision gave Newcastle a reprieve, having rescued a point through Anthony Gordon's equaliser after Marcus Tavernier netted the opening goal in the first half.

Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola felt it was "so obvious" the ball had come off Ouattara's shoulder, and Howe appreciated it was "a contentious decision", even if he welcomed it.

"I thought the game was lost because I initially hadn't seen anything wrong with the goal," the Newcastle coach told BBC's Match of the Day.

"We have had it both ways. We have had it for us and against us, and we are very grateful for that moment because we have battled hard.

"What we had at that stage of the game was a valuable point. But I understand that it is a contentious decision."

Iraola added: "It was so obvious. I think everyone who watches the game would agree.

"I think the shoulder; it never touches his skin. We have very short sleeves.

"They say it is factual; show me the facts. I have just seen the video, and the fact is it doesn't touch the arm, it is the shoulder, a clear goal and three points for us.

"It is something that is not even controversial. It is definitely not something for VAR to intervene.

"I have nothing against the referee; he gave the goal, they did not give him the chance to see it again. [It was] someone in the VAR, who supposedly is not going to intervene too much, they say, because they trust the referee.

"It doesn't matter that I complain now; it is two points less."

Thomas Muller is now the outright record-holder for Bundesliga appearances for Bayern Munich.

Muller came off the bench on Sunday to help Bayern come from behind to beat Wolfsburg in Vincent Kompany's first league game in charge.

It marked Muller's 474th Bundesliga match for the club, seeing him overtake Sepp Maier as Bayern's record appearance-maker in the competition.

The 34-year-old made an immediate impact after his introduction, helping to force Jakub Kaminski to turn into his own goal to restore parity.

Muller, who also played a role in the winner on Sunday when he put in Harry Kane, who in turn teed up Serge Gnabry, has now won 340 Bundesliga matches, which is more than any other player in the competition since he made his Bayern debut.

In that same period, Muller has scored 149 league goals, which ranks third in Germany's top tier, while providing a competition-leading 169 assists and creating 927 goalscoring opportunities.

A late goal by Serge Gnabry secured Bayern Munich a hard-fought 3-2 victory at Wolfsburg on Sunday, giving Vincent Kompany a winning start in the Bundesliga.

Wolfsburg started brightly, but the visitors made the better chances in the first half, taking the lead after fine work by Sacha Boey down the right to set up Jamal Musiala for an easy tap-in.

However, Bayern were punished for a slow start after the break, as Boey brought down Tiago Tomas in the box, and Lovro Majer made no mistake from the spot.

Wolfsburg created all kinds of trouble for the visitors' defence and Majer gave them the lead in the 55th minute, having also struck the post shortly before.

Thomas Muller became Bayern's all-time record appearance-maker in the Bundesliga seconds before Jakub Kaminski's own goal levelled the scores in the 65th minute. 

But Gnabry struck with eight minutes left on the clock to secure all three points for the Bavarians.

Data Debrief: History maker

While the plaudits from the game will go to the goalscorers, Muller cemented himself in the Bayern history books with the most appearances - Sunday was his 474th Bundesliga match for the club, overtaking Sepp Maier.

Bayern have now scored in each of their last 32 Bundesliga games against Wolfsburg (93 goals in total). It's the longest-scoring run against any particular side in their history.

The visitors are now unbeaten in their season-opener in each of the last 13 seasons (won 11, drawn two), a new record for a team in Bundesliga history. 

 

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