How Real Madrid superstar ‘risked’ himself to try and help save Alonso’s job – report

Following the announcement of Xabi Alonso’s dismissal by Real Madrid , superstar forward Kylian Mbappe was one of the first players to express his affection and gratitude to the former manager.

After all, the 27-year-old superstar hit his best form at Real Madrid this season under Alonso and has been the team’s best player so far.

Now, L’Equipe reports that Mbappe had taken ‘risks’ with his fitness to play in the Spanish Super Cup on Sunday and help Alonso, who was fighting for his job.

The France international was aware that a defeat against Barcelona would very likely be the end of his coach at the club.

It was therefore no coincidence that the Real Madrid No.10 pushed hard to be available for selection, even if only for a few minutes at the end of the match.

Mbappe pushed himself to help Alonso. (Photo by Denis Doyle/Getty Images)

Suffering from a knee sprain, Mbappe was expected to be unavailable until 21 January, but he eventually gave in to the requests of a coaching staff he appreciated.

He did not receive a pain-killer injection, as was speculated in Spanish media, but he played while still facing discomfort, despite several warnings about the risk of a relapse with more serious consequences.

As per the report, the relationship between Xabi Alonso and the Frenchman had been smooth since the beginning of their partnership last June.

The former Bayer Leverkusen coach understood that he needed to build a close connection with the captain of the French national team.

Furthermore, Mbappe, for his part, appreciated the dynamic training sessions led by the Real Madrid coach and his vision of the game, despite some players complaining about them.

Interestingly, this comes after there have been speculations about Mbappe defying Alonso’s request to give Barcelona a guard of honour after the Super Cup defeat and pulling his teammates aside .