Real Madrid 3 Stuttgart 1 – Mbappe scores on big night but issues ...

The story should have been about Kylian Mbappe beginning his quest for a first Champions League title with the perfect opening night.

And while Real did secure victory after late goals from Antonio Rudiger and Endrick, a disjointed display nearly allowed Stuttgart to take a point from the Bernabeu.

The German side dominated the early stages as Real relied heavily on Thibaut Courtois to keep the scores level, while the Champions League holders also had a penalty ruled out by the video assistant referee after Rudiger went down in the area.

Mbappe, who joined from Paris Saint-Germain in the summer, finished a flowing move early in the second half, but instead of pushing on, Real struggled to control the midfield and Stuttgart got an equaliser midway through the second half. Thankfully for Carlo Ancelotti, Rudiger headed them in front and Endrick sealed the points with a brilliant run and goal.

Here, Dermot Corrigan breaks down the action.

Mbappe has already experienced the Champions League at the Bernabeu with PSG but his collection of fantastic individual performances and goals failed to fire his team to success. Tonight was the first time the Frenchman played in the competition as a Madrid player and he was their sharpest attacker.

He picked up the ball from 30 yards out and easily ran past a defender to make room for a shot from the edge of the box, which was easily saved by Stuttgart goalkeeper Alexander Nubel. Next, out of nothing, he again easily glided past his marker down the left of the penalty area, before flashing in a shot caused Nubel more problems.

Mbappe was Madrid’s most dangerous player (Thomas Coex/AFP via Getty Images)

Within 23 seconds of the restart, Mbappe had his goal. When Maximilian Mittelstadt’s missed clearance allowed Rodrygo to motor down the right wing, Mbappe timed his run to remain onside and meet the cross for a simple finish and his first Champions League goal for Madrid (49th in all).

Almost immediately, Mbappe was haring clear again, going himself for goal, even with Jude Bellingham unmarked inside. He finished the game with six shots on goal, four of which were on target.

It was not at all a classic night for Mbappe, and there is definitely more to come for the Frenchman, but after waiting so long he is up and running for Madrid in his and their favourite competition.

It was a tremendously exciting 90 minutes, with lots of chances at both ends of the pitch, but a lot of this was down to problems in Madrid’s midfield.

Ancelotti started Aurelien Tchouameni and Bellingham, who were both returning from injury, in the centre. Neither looked completely match fit, coming in and out of the game, and neither gave Madrid much control of the ball. Teams rarely come to the Bernabeu and edge the possession stats, but Stuttgart had more of the ball and territory on their return to European competition after more than a decade away.

It was clear how much Madrid are missing Toni Kroos, who retired at the end of last season. Kroos was an automatic starter, with his range of passing dictating the pace of even the most difficult games.

Tchouameni and Bellingham have many qualities, but neither has shown they can step into Kroos’ boots and control a game from the centre circle.

Ancelotti’s frustration at how things were going was clear, and just after Stuttgart’s more-than-deserved equaliser, he removed the Frenchman and sent on 39-year-old Luka Modric.

Modric, who provided the ball in for Rudiger’s goal, was accompanied in the centre by Federico Valverde, with Bellingham pushed further forward. It did not really fix the problem, and the action continued to burst from end to end, with both teams having chances.

Finding a new way for Madrid to control games, now that Kroos is gone, is one of the big challenges for Ancelotti this season. The Croatian showed his quality with the ball for Rudiger’s winner, but for how long can Modric be the answer?

Nacho Fernandez’s departure over the summer was not as dramatic as Kroos’ decision to step away but it left Ancelotti without another crucial member of last season’s squad.

Nacho filled in gaps when needed anywhere across the back four. He started at centre-back in last year’s Champions League final victory over Borussia Dortmund.

Madrid did not replace Nacho, who left for Saudi Pro League side Al Qadsiah, in the transfer market. Instead, 27-year-old Jesus Vallejo, who last started in La Liga for Madrid in May 2022, was retained instead of being sent on loan again.

Ancelotti clearly does not rate Vallejo, so on Tuesday night, he asked right-back Dani Carvajal to fill in at centre-back, as he has done in the past. It did not work on Tuesday night. Backup Lucas Vazquez had a tough first 45 minutes at right-back, and was hooked at the break, having already picked up a yellow card.

The plan had been to rest Eder Militao, with the Brazilian nursing a muscle issue picked up recently on international duty with Brazil. But Ancelotti had to send on Militao at half-time, given all the chances Stuttgart were making, and how busy Courtois had been.

Even with Militao alongside Rudiger, Madrid still did not look solid, with Courtois again bailing them out. The lack of protection from the midfield did not help, but the overall impression was that Madrid’s squad is at least one defender short until David Alaba returns from his long-term knee injury.

The opening stages were open and entertaining, with Stuttgart dominating against a sluggish Madrid side who took a long time to get going.

Courtois was called into action after just two minutes, when it was way too easy for the visitors to break straight through the centre of the pitch, and Jamie Leweling fired a shot from an angle that the Madrid goalkeeper did well to parry. A misplaced pass from stand-in right-back Vazquez then allowed Deniz Undav to send winger Enzo Millot through one-on-one with Courtois, who sprang from his line, and Millot sent his shot just wide.

Using expected goals on target (xGOT, a metric looking at how difficult it is to save on-target shots), we can measure a goalkeeper’s ‘goals prevented’. Courtois faced a total xGOT of 2.4, but only conceded one goal, suggesting he kept out at least one more goal than the average ‘keeper would be expected to save (graphic below).

The Belgium international also made saves from Leweling and Millot again, taking him to four stops and 0.93 goals prevented during the first 20 minutes, in which Stuttgart had a super surprising 71 per cent possession.

Next it was the woodwork which saved Madrid, when Undav’s shot deflected off Carvajal, looped over a stranded Courtois but hit the crossbar.

But we have seen this story many times before in the Champions League. A sluggish Madrid ride their luck, rely on their goalkeeper, but survive and ultimately thrive.

Saturday, September 21: Espanyol (H), La Liga, 8pm BST, 3pm ET

(Top photo: Angel Martinez/Getty Images)

Dermot joined The Athletic in 2020 and has been our main La Liga Correspondent up until now. Irish-born, he has spent more than a decade living in Madrid and writing about Spanish football for ESPN, the UK Independent and the Irish Examiner. Follow Dermot on Twitter @dermotmcorrigan