5 Bold Predictions for Real Madrid with Kylian Mbappé

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Possibly the worst-kept secret in football has finally been confirmed.

Real Madrid, fresh off an incredible 15th European Cup title, have announced Kylian Mbappé will be joining their ranks next season.

Be afraid. Be very afraid.

If Los Blancos weren’t already a terrifying proposition, simply the sight of the Frenchman would herald the raising of white flags from multiple opponents before a ball is even kicked.

The results should be phenomenal, and Madridistas will be practically vibrating with excitement about what their lineup will look like next season.

So what can we expect from the Mbappé era at Real Madrid? Read on for a selection of bold predictions.

A First-Season Treble

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A disappointing round-of-16 Copa del Rey exit to Atletico Madrid in January 2024 killed any hopes Real Madrid had of securing a potential treble.

At that point, Girona were still surprising La Liga title challengers, and Los Blancos were yet to play in the UCL knockout stages. But Real would have been dreaming big before the cup loss to their local rivals, and the end of the treble discussion before it began would have been infuriating.

Incredibly, it’s one of the few achievements Real Madrid have not yet claimed. That Barcelona are the only Spanish team to have won a treble (in both the men’s and women’s leagues) will be even more irksome.

But Mbappé should get them over the hump, with the 25-year-old providing a wholly unnecessary addition of quality to what is already a sensational squad. Surely no team can stand in Real’s way of making it a clean sweep for the first time in their history?

Bellingham Moves Deeper

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Jude Bellingham has been incredible in his first year at the Santiago Bernabeu, scoring 23 goals and assisting 13 in all competitions, picking up numerous personal accolades along the way.

He’s been given the freedom to push on a bit and be a difference-maker in the final third, which has been incredibly important as Real navigated their first season without talisman Karim Benzema leading the line.

However, with the additions of Mbappé and Endrick, and the steady emergence of Arda Güler to add to Vincius Jr. and Rodrygo, those attacking stars will need to be kept happy, and Bellingham could be asked to keep the peace by sticking a little closer to his own box.

With Toni Kroos retiring after a stunningly successful career, there’s a gap in midfield to make up, too. With midfielders Aurélien Tchouaméni and Eduardo Camavinga filling in spots in the back line at times and perhaps required to do so again next season, Bellingham seems the most likely player to at least replace some of Kroos’ influence from the middle of the park.

The goals and assists totals may drop for Bellingham in season two, but that doesn’t mean he will be any less impressive. He’ll just need to perform a slightly different role.

Real Will Not Lose a Clásico for at Least the Next Three Years

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The fortunes of Real Madrid and Barcelona are looking to be pointed in opposite directions.

The pair were seemingly equals for so long, trading La Liga titles over the last two decades aside from a couple of rude interruptions by Atlético.

El Clásico is perhaps the gold standard of rivalry matches, and it’s no surprise that it’s not just the cities of Barcelona and Madrid that come to a halt when these two teams battle it out.

But with Barcelona in complete organizational and financial disarray and Real tightening their grip on football dominance with the signing of Mbappé, it seems the odds could be heavily in the team in white’s favor for some time to come.

Since the start of 2020, 14 Clásicos have been played across all possible competitions. Of those, Barcelona have won just four, with Real Madrid claiming the rest (including victories in extra time).

In fact, Barcelona have lost the last four Clásicos by a 13-4 accumulative scoreline. According to Barcelona’s own website, Real Madrid have 105 all-time victories in the fixture compared to Barça’s 100, and that gap should grow wider in the next few years.

Shall we make this even bolder? Mbappé will score a hat-trick in this fixture in his first season.

Real Will Go the Whole 2024-25 Campaign Unbeaten

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Only two teams have ever completed an unbeaten La Liga season: Athletic Club and (you guessed it) Real Madrid.

Barcelona came within inches of adding their name to the list, but a shocking 5-4 loss to Levante in the Blaugrana’s penultimate game of the 2017-18 season dashed those ambitions.

But with the addition of Mbappé, repeating the feat they first achieved in the 1931-32 season looks tantalizingly possible for Real. They will need to ensure their rearguard can match the standards of the front line (more on that in a second), but Real simply outplaying and outscoring everyone else seems entirely likely.

They only lost two games across the whole of the 2023-24 campaign, so what’s stopping them from taking an extra leap next season?

Real Will Concede 40+ Goals in the 2024-25 La Liga Season

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With all the success that’s likely to follow Mbappés arrival, some lineup gymnastics will be necessary, too.

Real’s back line was beaten and bruised throughout the thoroughly successful 2023-24 campaign, with Éder Militão and David Alaba missing long stretches and Camavinga and Tchouameni having to settle into defensive duties—often doing so with aplomb. They may be called into action again if further issues arise.

With center-back Nacho Fernández set to leave the only club he’s ever known professionally after 364 first-team appearances, a little experience will be going out the door with him, too, and Real will suffer the consequences.

Having to satiate the appetites of the big-name stars up top will lead to some defensive lapses, and the 26 league goals conceded in 2023-24 looks unlikely to be replicated with the defense increasingly exposed. Kroos’ exit won’t help matters on that front, either.

If Real don’t address the defense in the summer window, those exits and the shoehorning in of players will become even more troublesome.

Real will concede over 40 goals in La Liga next season. Will it matter? Not really.