Kylian Mbappé tucked the ball under his shirt as he raised both hands to return the applause to the Real Madrid fans who savored his first hat trick for his new club.
The France star had just led a 3-0 victory at struggling Valladolid that extended Madrid’s lead of La Liga on Saturday, keeping it in position to retain the title just after the midway point of the campaign.
Gone was the inconsistent play and missed penalties from Mbappé during his first months with Madrid following his move from Paris Saint-Germain. The France captain has started pouring in goals with back-to-back multi-goal games and has Madrid in pole position with Atletico Madrid and Barcelona stalled.
“I’m very happy for the hat trick but even happier for the win,” Mbappé said in fluent Spanish. “It was very important to win after Atletico’s result because that gave us a bit more pressure to take advantage of it.”
Madrid’s fourth straight triumph in the league combined with Atletico Madrid’s 1-1 draw with Villarreal let Carlo Ancelotti’s side open a four-point gap over its city rival. Barcelona was in third place at 10 points back before hosting Valencia on Sunday.
Madrid trailed then-leader Barcelona at one point, but since getting blown away in a 4-0 clasico debacle, it has found its stride and is in championship mode.
“My adaptation to the team is over. I feel comfortable on the field and you can see that from the way I am playing with my teammates,” Mbappé said.
“This gives us confidence, but you know that until the 38th round this is not over. We have to keep winning because there is a long way to go.”