PA Media/DPA
London
Coach Carlo Ancelotti is convinced Kylian Mbappe will quickly develop an understanding with fellow stars Jude Bellingham and Vinicius Junior as Real Madrid prepare to start the new La Liga season.
France forward Mbappe arrived on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain during the summer and marked his debut with a goal in the 2-0 midweek European Super Cup success over Atalanta.
Real’s star-studded squad begin their domestic title defence away to Mallorca on Sunday evening.
“We try to make sure that all the new players who join Madrid feel comfortable,” manager Ancelotti told a press conference.
“An extraordinary talent has arrived and we have to help him adapt as quickly as possible. He’s serious, modest and has started off very well.
“Mbappe, Vini Junior, Rodrygo and Bellingham have played together for the first time and have not had any difficulty when combining.
“Good players have that spark and the ability to play with quality. I don’t need to try other things because they know how to play together.” England international Bellingham shone in his first season at Santiago Bernabeu from Borussia Dortmund.
He hit 23 goals in all competitions and became a European champion following victory over former club Dortmund in the Champions League final at Wembley.
Ancelotti does not envisage the 21-year-old’s role in the team altering this term.
“Bellingham’s position has not changed in comparison to the end of last season,” said the Italian coach.
“He always plays on the left of midfield and I haven’t changed his position.
“Sometimes he comes back down to help play the ball out, but his offensive role is the same. I have to evaluate tomorrow’s team to see whether I make changes or not.”
Real will potentially play in seven competitions this term following last season’s league and European double.
With one trophy already in the bag thanks to Wednesday’s win over Atalanta, Ancelotti feels his side can challenge on all fronts but is not contemplating a septuple.
“We don’t know how many competitions we’ll have to play in because the Club World Cup and the Intercontinental are not quite clear yet,” he said.
“Even so, we’re going to compete in all of them and in all the games we have ahead of us. Nobody is talking about a septet.
“The calendar demands that we only focus on the games we have to play, starting with tomorrow’s.
“We have to think about preparing things every three days because that’s what the calendar demands, but with this squad we can compete in all competitions.
“We don’t know when or how the season will be run and we can’t think about a septet.”
