Kylian Mbappe marked his UEFA Champions League debut for his new club with a goal and a win as Real Madrid scraped past Stuttgart 3-1 at the Bernabeu.
The Frenchman was on target in the first minute of the second half as he slotted home a Rodrygo cross, but his opener was cancelled out by Deniz Undav’s header on 68 minutes.
It seemed as though the Germans would leave the Spanish capital with a deserved point to kick off their league stage campaign, but they were cruelly dealt a knockout blow by one of their former youth prodigies, Antonio Rudiger, who rose highest to flick home a Luka Modric corner with seven minutes to play.
Endrick emerged off the bench in the dying embers to add a third and kill off any lingering Stuttgart hope, as his speculative effort from range squirmed beyond Alexander Nubel deep into stoppage time.
Carlo Ancelotti’s defending champions looked disjointed at times as their star-studded attack takes its time to properly gel, but the Madrid faithful got to see their new star striker find the back of the net on his Champions League bow in the famous white shirt.
Thibaut Courtois was forced into save after save as Sebastian Hoeness’ visitors peppered the Madrid goal, but they lacked that clinical edge as the hosts stole the points on matchday one.
