Real Madrid striker Kylian Mbappe did not want to hang around to watch Barcelona lift the Spanish Super Cup
Barcelona president Joan Laporta says he is baffled by Kylian Mbappe’s behaviour after their Spanish Super Cup win over Real Madrid last night.
Barca claimed the trophy with a 3-2 victory inspired by Raphinha, who scored twice in Jeddah.
Mbappe was expected to sit the game out due to a knee injury but came on in place of Gonzalo Garcia with 14 minutes to go but could not inspire a comeback.
As is now customary, Barcelona gave Madrid a guard of honour as they went up to receive their runners-up medals but, instead of waiting to watch the Catalan side lift the trophy, Mbappe urged his team-mates to disappear down the tunnel to the dressing room.
I am surprised, says Barcelona president Laporta
His actions have not gone down well, leading to accusations of a lack of sportsmanship, and Laporta felt the France captain had not behaved correctly.
He told RAC-1: “I’m surprised by what he did. In victory and defeat you have to be generous and respectful. This is sport and you must show good behaviour. I think we, in victory, were generous and respected the opposing team. That’s why I can’t understand it.”
Robert Lewandowski also scored for Barcelona in between efforts from Vinicius Jr and Garcia with all three coming in first-half stoppage time.
It meant Barca enjoyed an element of revenge for their 2-1 defeat in Madrid in the season’s first Clasico in October.
Laporta added: ”There was a different atmosphere following the league match which can be understood. The truth is that I didn’t see that moment of Mbappé on the field, but I understand that they must have been very angry and there was that reaction.”
We want to win more – Barcelona hero Raphinha
Barcelona must swiftly turn their attention back to domestic matters with a Copa del Rey trip to Racing Santander on Thursday before resuming their Liga campaign at Real Sociedad on Sunday.
Hansi Flick’s side can end the season with a treble, including the Champions League, in addition to their Super Cup win.
“When you wear this shirt, the main objective is always to win trophies. We’re doing well. We have a lot of young players who have that winning mentality, which is good for the club. We want to fight and win trophies,” Raphinha said.
“We can improve on last year. The team has matured. We can continue [to build on] what we did last season. It depends more on us than others. We have to stay focused. We know what we want.”