Kylian Mbappé played a starring role in Real Madrid’s 3–0 victory over Athletic Club in LaLiga, contributing to every goal as Los Blancos continued their strong recent record against the Basque side — now just one loss in their last seven league encounters.

Real Madrid immediately set the tone, forcing Unai Simón into two quick saves to deny Mbappé and Vinícius Júnior after some shaky early defending from Athletic. But the visitors’ pressure soon paid off. In the seventh minute, Trent Alexander-Arnold picked out Mbappé, who effortlessly surged past Iñigo Lekue, cut inside Aymeric Laporte, and rifled a clinical finish beyond Simón.

Athletic nearly hit back when Gorka Guruzeta fired over from a Nico Williams delivery, yet Madrid’s front line remained the greater threat. Guruzeta later tested Thibaut Courtois with a fierce strike, and the Belgian produced another key stop to thwart Álex Berenguer on the half-hour mark. Vinícius twice broke in behind Ernesto Valverde’s defence soon after, hitting the post on one occasion before Simón stepped in once more.

The second goal eventually arrived before halftime. Alexander-Arnold delivered another pinpoint cross, Mbappé rose highest to head it back into the danger area, and Eduardo Camavinga reacted perfectly to nod home from close range.

Valverde looked to spark a response with a double substitution at the interval, but Mbappé was back on the attack within seconds of the restart. Still, Courtois remained busy at the opposite end, tipping an effort from Mikel Jauregizar over the bar as Athletic continued to fight.

Madrid suffered a setback when Alexander-Arnold was forced off with injury on 55 minutes, followed later by Camavinga, who initially tried to battle through a challenge from Berenguer before conceding defeat.

That disruption didn’t derail Madrid’s grip on the match. After tempers flared in a clash involving Mbappé and Adama Boiro, the Frenchman had the perfect response — unleashing a spectacular long-range strike that flew past Simón to make it 3–0 and kill off any hopes of an Athletic comeback.

Guruzeta pushed for a consolation late on but failed to keep his attempts on target, leaving Madrid to celebrate a commanding win that ends their run of three straight league draws and keeps them firmly in pursuit of Barcelona at the top — just a single point behind. Meanwhile, it marks a fourth defeat in six LaLiga outings for Athletic, who sit eighth in the table for now.