Real Madrid’s season has been dominated by headlines featuring Kylian Mbappe’s blistering form, his goalscoring exploits, and his growing influence on Carlo Ancelotti’s squad. The French superstar has already netted 33 goals in his debut season, helping Los Blancos maintain their pursuit of La Liga, Copa del Rey, and UEFA Champions League titles.
However, behind the scenes, Real Madrid has been working on a plan to refine the Frenchman’s skill set further, preparing him for an even more significant role in the team. While fans and analysts have marveled at his ability to find the back of the net from open play, the club’s coaching staff believes he has one more major area to master—a skill that once defined Cristiano Ronaldo’s reign at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Mbappe gave a glimpse of this new development in his game during Real Madrid’s recent La Liga victory over Leganes. In that match, he stepped up to take a free kick and scored—the first free-kick goal of his career at the senior level.
While some have debated whether the goal should count as a direct free kick due to a slight repositioning of the ball before the strike, the quality of the finish was undeniable. It marked the beginning of something new for the Frenchman, who has rarely taken set pieces throughout his career.
Los Blancos’ coaching staff reportedly took note of that moment—not just because it added to Mbappe’s growing goal tally but because it reinforced the idea that he could take on a role once held by the club’s greatest-ever goalscorer.
The plan to turn Mbappe into Ronaldo’s successor
According to a report by El Chiringuito, Real Madrid have set a plan in motion to turn Kylian Mbappe into their primary set-piece specialist—a role previously owned by Cristiano Ronaldo and later shared among players like Toni Kroos and Karim Benzema.
“Within the Real Madrid staff, they want Mbappe to become a specialist in free kicks. That’s why they’ve been working with him for over a month on this type of situation, with the good result he achieved against Leganes,” journalist Jose Luis Sanchez revealed.
This shift would allow Mbappe to assume a more complete attacking role—not only as the team’s leading scorer from open play and penalties but also as their go-to player for dead-ball situations. The comparison to CR7 is inevitable, as the Portuguese legend was the Whites’ last consistent free-kick threat, capable of turning set pieces into goals from virtually anywhere on the pitch.
Natural evolution for Mbappe?
Mbappe has already established himself as a clinical penalty taker, famously holding his nerve to score twice from the spot in the 2022 World Cup final against Argentina. Throughout his career, he has taken 60 penalties, scoring 48 and missing 12.
Now, Real Madrid want to expand his repertoire. Free kicks have never been a major part of his game, but the club believes that, with dedicated training, he could develop into a deadly weapon from long range.
Mbappe, for his part, appears eager to embrace this challenge. Reports suggest that he has been training specifically on free kicks for over a month, with his Leganes strike being the first clear result of that work.
