Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappé scored a late-game goal, including a penalty, to secure a 2-0 home win over Real Betis on Sunday, giving the champions their second LaLiga victory of the season.

France captain Mbappe, who joined Marid from Paris Saint-Germain in June, has failed to score in his first three La Liga games after making his debut in a 2-0 UEFA Super Cup win over Europa League champions Atalanta.

On Sunday, the Frenchman ended his brief drought and helped his team to a second win in four league games, taking some of the pressure off ahead of the two-week international break, as the team now sit second on eight points, four behind Barcelona.

After a disappointing 1-1 draw at bottom-of-the-table Las Palmas on Thursday, and still without attacking midfielder Jude Bellingham due to a leg injury, the home side made another slow start on Sunday, dominating possession but failing to create any real chances.

The so-called “New Galacticos” Mbappé, Vinícius Júnior and Rodrygo missed too many passes and struggled to score.

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Betis played a well-organised defence and were often dangerous on the counter. For example, striker Abde Ezzalzouli missed two real chances in the first 15 minutes that could have surprised Real.

With Rodrygo in the right channel, Mbappé and Vinicius struggled to find their charms as they swapped positions early in the game. The same issues as in previous games indicated that Madrid had to work harder than expected to get Mbappé into their system.

Mbappé missed a number of real chances from Vinicius crosses and failed to beat the defenders in the early stages, but as the game progressed he looked more like his old self, making runs from midfield and the left flank.

The home side seemed to liven up after the break, with Mbappé and Vinicius starting to score more and they continued to make progress in the second half, with Vinicius hitting the post in the 50th minute.

They finally broke the deadlock in the 67th minute through a close-range shot from Mbappé, after a superb backheel from midfielder Federico Valverde, who cleverly avoided the offside trap.

Mbappé secured the points in the 75th minute with a penalty after Vinicius fouled goalkeeper Rui Silva.