Mbappé masterclass inspires thumping win at San Mamés

Real Madrid prevailed at San Mamés in the rescheduled matchday 19 fixture in LaLiga. The Whites dominated Athletic Club from the outset, with Mbappé at the heart of the action. The Frenchman, who has scored 25 goals this season, put in another stellar performance. The striker opened the scoring seven minutes into the game with a trademark strike and then headed the ball across the goal to set up Camavinga to make it two. After the break, he added his second with a powerful shot from the edge of the box.

The match began at a frantic pace with plenty of chances. The Whites almost took the lead after just five minutes when Vivian misplaced a clearance and Mbappé capitalised, cutting inside the Basque defender and then one-on-one with Unai Simón, who made a fine save. The goalkeeper was on hand again two minutes later to deny Vini Jr. from the edge of the box. But he was unable to prevent Mbappé from scoring a stunning goal. The Frenchman received a measured pass from Trent, controlled the ball superbly to get away from Lekue, dribbled past Laporte and beat Unai Simón with an exquisite finish from the edge of the box.

Camavinga doubles the lead
Athletic responded with two chances that were well dealt with by Courtois, following Guruzeta's left-footed effort in the 25th minute and Berenguer's one-on-one five minutes later. The Madrid goalkeeper's display was followed by two clear chances for Vini Jr., who dribbled past Unai Simón in the 32nd minute, but his shot hit the post. Six minutes later, Militão delivered a magnificent long pass to his compatriot, who found himself one-on-one with the goalkeeper, only for the keeper to deny him. These were Madrid's best minutes of the game, and their reward came in the 42nd minute. Trent started the move in the visitors' area. Valverde, Vini Jr., Mbappé, Carreras and Bellingham were all involved before the English full-back appeared in the opposition's area and crossed to Mbappé, who headed the ball to Camavinga. The midfielder made no mistake and headed the ball into the net from close range.

After the restart, the match became more scrappy. Until Mbappé popped up again. The Frenchman controlled the ball at the edge of the box, looked up and caught Unai Simón off guard in the 59th minute with a fierce, well-placed shot. The Real Madrid striker added to his tally: his seventh goal in the last three games and his 25th of the season (16 in LaLiga and 9 in the Champions League). With the score at 0-3, the home side's reaction was dampened and the pace of the game slowed down. Apart from a shot by Valverde, which was saved by Simón in the 82nd minute, there were hardly any moments of danger in either area. The only negative point was the substitutions of Trent and Camavinga, who left the San Mamés pitch injured.