Kylian Mbappe Hat Trick Powers Real Madrid Past Real Sociedad in Mourinho’s Bernabeu Return

Kylian Mbappe scored a hat trick as Real Madrid thrashed Real Sociedad 4-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday, delivering Jose Mourinho a statement win in his first home match back in charge of the club. Vinicius Junior also found the net as Los Blancos moved to two wins from two in La Liga and sit atop the table early in the 2026-27 season.

Mbappe has been La Liga’s most prolific scorer in each of the last two seasons, netting 31 goals in 2024-25 and 25 in 2025-26, and he arrived at this match as the reigning World Cup Golden Boot winner after helping France to the tournament. Last season alone, the France international scored 42 goals across all competitions for Real Madrid, cementing his status as arguably the best player in the world entering this campaign. He has become the focal point of Mourinho’s attack alongside Vinicius and Jude Bellingham, and Wednesday’s outburst pushed his career tally to 89 goals in just 105 appearances for the club since his move from Paris Saint-Germain. Fans tracking the club’s odds to reclaim the league title all season can follow the Champions League odds as the race for silverware unfolds.

Mbappe Takes Over at the Bernabeu

Real Sociedad arrived at the Bernabeu for the first-round fixture, originally postponed earlier in the season, and stunned the home crowd by equalizing just four minutes after Mbappe opened the scoring. The Frenchman broke through in the 40th minute, collecting a pass from Federico Valverde, cutting inside a defender, and firing into the top corner for his first goal of the campaign. Luka Sucic answered for the visitors in the 44th minute, capitalizing after Madrid failed to clear a loose ball in the box, and sent the two sides in level at halftime. It gave Mourinho’s men a real test in his return to the home dugout, with the Basque club refusing to fold despite Madrid’s dominance in possession for large stretches of the opening half.

Mourinho made his move at the break, introducing Marc Cucurella, and Real Madrid took control of the second half. Mbappe restored the lead on the hour mark after a sharp exchange with Bellingham, beating goalkeeper Alex Remiro from close range. Eight minutes later, Bellingham’s pressing won the ball back and he crossed for Vinicius Junior to tap in Madrid’s third, extending the margin and settling the home crowd’s nerves. Vinicius then turned provider in the 80th minute, slipping a clever ball behind the Sociedad defense that allowed Mbappe to lift a composed chip over Remiro and complete his hat trick. Real Madrid nearly added a fifth late on, but a goal was chalked off for offside after a VAR review.

Mourinho’s Bernabeu Return and What Comes Next

Wednesday marked Mourinho’s first game back at the Bernabeu since his first stint in charge from 2010 to 2013, and the result gave the Portuguese manager consecutive league wins to open his second tenure following an opening victory at Espanyol. Bellingham finished the match with two assists, underscoring the early chemistry among Madrid’s attacking trio that Mourinho had called a “difficult” puzzle to solve during preseason. Speaking before the campaign began, Mourinho acknowledged the tactical challenge of fitting Mbappe, Vinicius, and Bellingham into the same eleven, but insisted the trio were not incompatible and predicted the club would enjoy a great season with all three on the field together. Vinicius, who agreed a new contract through 2032 over the summer after fielding interest from Arsenal, has quickly settled back into the left-wing role that has made him one of the most dangerous players in Europe.

The win also arrived alongside the debut push of Yan Diomande, the club’s record summer signing from RB Leipzig, as Mourinho continues shaping a squad built to end a two-season trophy drought. Real Madrid has not lifted a major title since the 2023-24 campaign, and the front office invested heavily over the offseason to surround Mbappe and Vinicius with more depth and balance. Mourinho, known throughout his career for pragmatic, defensively sound sides, has signaled he wants a more structured approach than his predecessors, betting that a tighter defensive foundation will let Mbappe and company punish teams in transition, much as they did against Real Sociedad.

With Mbappe now fully unleashed and Vinicius contributing directly to the scoring column, Real Madrid’s early-season form has answered some of the questions about fitting three world-class attackers into one lineup. The club sits at the top of La Liga after two matchdays, and if Mbappe continues scoring at this pace, Real Madrid’s pursuit of a first trophy in three seasons could gain serious momentum in the months ahead.