Rafael Nadal received a special gift from Kylian Mbappe after attending the football star’s Real Madrid league debut on Sunday.
Earlier this year, Mbappe completed his highly anticipated transfer to Real Madrid, and he’s already making his presence felt. He first took the field during Los Blancos’ UEFA Super Cup victory over Atalanta mid-week, where he marked the occasion by finding the back of the net.
However, Mbappe’s La Liga debut for Real Madrid didn’t go as smoothly, as he failed to score in their opening-day 1-1 draw against Real Mallorca. Among the spectators was tennis legend Rafael Nadal, who managed to catch up with Mbappe after the match. In a video shared on social media, the two sports icons shared a warm embrace before Mbappe surprised Nadal with a thoughtful gesture.
To Nadal’s delight, Mbappe pulled out his match-worn Real Madrid jersey from the draw and gifted it to the 22-time Grand Slam champion.
The interaction was brief, as Mbappe was quickly ushered away by security, but Nadal’s excitement was evident as he received the prized shirt. Despite the gift, Nadal—like many Real Madrid fans—will be hoping for more from the club’s latest Galactico as they aim to secure back-to-back La Liga titles this season.
Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti addressed the match afterward, commenting on Mbappe’s role: “Sometimes Mbappé plays more centrally and sometimes one of the two [him and Vinicius Junior] has to occupy this flank, without a particular plan. It depends on how they feel about it.
“I don’t want to make excuses for anything, but we just need to do better and with a better attitude. We can learn a lot from this match. It’s quite clear where our problems could come from.”
