Arbeloa defends Mbappe’s commitment despite Madrid’s Champions League exit to Bayern

Real Madrid coach Alvaro Arbeloa strongly defended Kylian Mbappe, who was criticized for what some saw as a lack of defensive effort in last week’s Champions League defeat to Bayern Munich.

Arbeloa, who is under pressure at Real and will almost certainly want to end the season without a trophy, said Mbappe had nothing to blame himself for and added that apart from scoring in both legs of the quarter-final, he had «given everything in defence».

Real lost 4-3 in a tense second leg to Bayern, who advanced 6-4 on aggregate, with the Spanish squad reduced to 10 men after Eduardo Camavinga was sent off in the 86th minute.

Bayern scored twice after the dismissal, prompting criticism of Mbappé.

However, Arbeloa dismissed these claims on Monday during his press conference ahead of Real’s match against Alavés.

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“I have nothing to blame Kylian,” Arbeloa said. “He was at the top of his game, scoring in both legs and being a constant threat to their defence.

«He gave everything in defence, he worked very hard. I was very pleased with his performance in that match,» the 43-year-old added.

Mbappe, who has scored 40 goals in all competitions in his second season in Spain, will have to wait longer to achieve what Arbeloa described as his ‘dream’ of winning the Champions League.

That ambition was one of the main reasons behind his move from Paris Saint-Germain, who won the title last season.

Arbeloa’s own future remains uncertain, with Barcelona nine points clear of Real in La Liga with seven games remaining. The Spaniard, who replaced Xabi Alonso earlier this season, said his fate was not in his hands but insisted there was no need for a ‘huge revolution’ at the club to get going again next season.

Published on April 20, 2026