Kylian Mbappe buried ghosts of the FIFA World Cup 2022 final as he helped his Real Madrid beat CF Pachuca 2-0 in their Intercontinental Cup final, at the Lusail Stadium here on Wednesday.
The Frenchman scored and assisted in the three-goal victory at the same stadium where his hat-trick had gone in vain as Lionel Messi’s Argentina lifted the World Cup, two years ago.
Though Pachuca started the match on the offensive, Madrid struck with its first shot on target in the 37th minute. Vinicius Jr. got a pass from the Jude Bellingham, danced past the defence along the left and then cut back to set up Mbappe in the centre.
Mbappe turned creator for the second goal as he set up Rodrygo, who rattled the net with a right-footed curler from outside the box.
Just when action looked to be petering in the match, Oussama Idrissi kicked Lucas Vazquez on his right knee and the referee, after a VAR check, game Madrid a penalty in the 84th minute, one that Vinicius converted to put the competition to bed.
