Mbappe lasted just 38 minutes on the pitch in Real Madrid’s La Liga encounter against Alaves on Sunday as he was shown a direct red card following a horror challenge on opponent Antonio Blanco. The Frenchman jumped for a challenge and stamped on Blanco’s leg, leaving the player in pain.

Per AS, Mbappe issued an apology to his teammates for leaving them a man down for the next 60 minutes on the field. The Frenchman did not give any excuses and was “very upset” with his on-field behaviour. The 25-year-old’s absence did not impact the eventual outcome of the game as 10-men Los Blancos held on to Eduardo Camavinga’s 34th-minute goal and eventually secured all three points.

After the match, Blanco revealed that he received an apology from Mbappe as he told reporters: “It was a strong tackle, I spoke with Kylian, he apologized and there is no problem, these are actions that can happen in football.”

The French forward is now expected to serve a three-match suspension, however, he is eligible to take the field against Barcelona in the Copa del Rey final on April 26.

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