Kylian Mbappe’s red-hot run of form in front of goal continued on Wednesday as he netted during a 2-1 win against Mallorca in LaLiga.
While the Real Madrid striker has certainly not escaped criticism during his first campaign in Spain since making a move as a free agent from PSG last summer, he has nevertheless made history in his first season at the Bernabeu.
By contrast, Cristiano Ronaldo only managed 26 LaLiga strikes in his first season.
Indeed, Mbappe has already surpassed the five-time Ballon d’Or winner by grabbing 40 goals in all competitions. Ronaldo, who joined Los Blancos from Manchester United in the summer of 2009 for €94 million, scored 35 in his debut campaign in Spain.
Mbappe sends records tumbling as he chases Golden Shoe
With two games of the season remaining, Mbappe could even match or eclipse the record for a Frenchman playing abroad in one of Europe’s four major leagues: the Premier League, Bundesliga, Serie A or LaLiga.
Thierry Henry currently holds the record with 30 goals in the 2003/04 season, a tally the 26-year-old is tantalisingly close to.
One record that looks beyond him, though, is the record for goals in all competitions scored by a debutant in Spain. That mark is held by Barcelona striker Rivaldo, who netted 47 times across all competitions in 1996/97.
Golden Shoe: Top 5 (15 May, 2025)
| Player | Goals | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Viktor Gyokeres (Sporting CP) | 38 | 57 |
| Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) | 28 | 56 |
| Kylian Mbappe (Real Madrid) | 28 | 56 |
| Robert Lewandowski (Barcelona) | 25 | 50 |
| Harry Kane (Bayern Munich) | 25 | 50 |
Mbappe is in the running to secure the Golden Shoe. Three ahead of Robert Lewandowski in the Pichichi standings, he is in touch with Viktor Gyokeres (Sporting CP) and Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) in the race to be crowned Europe’s most prolific scorer of the season.
Although there have been moments of crisis and disappointment for Real Madrid as a whole, there is little doubt that Mbappe has been a big success in his first season at the Bernabeu.
