La Liga giants Real Madrid sealed fresh glory on the continent on Wednesday, in no small part owing to the efforts of their two leading Ballon d’Or candidates.
Carlo Ancelotti’s troops, of course, marked their return to action a short time ago.
In the club’s first competitive outing of the new campaign, Real locked horns with Serie A outfit Atalanta, in the UEFA Super Cup showpiece.
When all was said and done, Los Blancos emerged on the right side of the result, owing to goals on the part of Federico Valverde, and summer signing Kylian Mbappé.
It was two other leading members of the Spanish champions’ ranks, though, who proved themselves the true stars of the show.
First was Ballon d’Or favourite Vinícius Jr, whose latest moment of individual brilliance culminated in the Brazilian laying on Valverde’s 2nd-half opener.
And then came the turn of Jude Bellingham, just behind Vinícius in the Ballon d’Or rankings, to notch a wonderful assist, the Englishman’s inch-perfect pass across goal allowing Mbappé to slot home a trademark finish.
It is, for understandable reasons, the name of debutant Mbappé which will take the headlines on Wednesday evening, but in truth, it is the ongoing excellence of teammates Vinícius and Bellingham which made the difference for Real Madrid once more.
Congratulations, Los Blancos!
Conor Laird | GSFN
