Kylian Mbappe is being scapegoated for Real Madrid’s failings according to Sweden and Parma legend Tomas Brolin, who stated this to Hajper.
Mbappe once again reminded us of his quality on Tuesday. During France’s Group I World Cup 2026 debut, he fired a double past Senegal to secure a 3-1 win at the MetLife stadium.
The impressive brace came at a difficult time for Mbappe, who has faced widespread criticism for his club form.
That comes despite 86 goals in 103 appearances since joining Real Madrid on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain in the summer of 2024.
Yet Madrid’s lack of major silverware across the past two seasons has seen him singled out, with his time in the Spanish capital deemed a failure until now.
According to Brolin, however, Mbappe is being targeted for the dysfunction at the Bernabeu which President Florentino Perez is now trying to remedy in light of FC Barcelona’s domestic dominance under Hansi Flick.
Mbappe is being made a scapegoat for Real Madrid shortcomings
While Mbappe himself has admitted he could do more trying to win the ball back, Brolin says that “he does so much in attack that it is harsh to demonise him for not being a defender”.
“Mbappe is being scapegoated for Real Madrid’s failings,” the Swede stated. “There’s probably no one who can complain about what he has done going forward. Then I haven’t seen enough matches to criticize him for what he doesn’t do tracking back. I have seen too few matches to be able to say anything about it.
“But offensively what he has done, he has just poured goals in at Real Madrid. But if Real Madrid doesn’t win anything one year, then you are always going to find scapegoats anyway. But I think it feels a bit harsh to put everything on Mbappe,” Brolin concluded.
Before the Senegal win, Mbappe vowed to defend more starting with Les Bleus’ campaign in North America.
“I need to take another step forward defensively. I’m ready to do things right because I want the World Cup at all costs. We often talk about this because he [his brother Ethan] defends a lot, a lot more than I do. But it’s good that people are highlighting this aspect,” Mbappe told Le Parisien.
“I’ve always been demanding of myself, and I think I need to take another step forward in that area. It’s something that’s important for teams, and I think I have to do it.”
Real Madrid forward Mbappe will next be in action for France on Monday, when Didier Deschamps men take on Iraq in Philadelphia.
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