The first setback of the new Jose Mourinho era at Real Madrid arrived on Friday evening, when Los Blancos were condemned to a 1-0 defeat to Real Betis on the fourth matchday of La Liga.
Troy Parrott - a former Tottenham Hotspur flame of Mourinho's - made the decisive contribution in the 81st minute, pouncing on a loose ball to finish from close range after Real Madrid failed to deal with a corner.
Controversy inevitably followed, as Blancos substitute Carlos Espi had a late equaliser disallowed for offside, before Mbappe's injury-time penalty was kept out by Betis goalkeeper Alvaro Valles.
An incensed Real Madrid unit believed that the spot kick should have been retaken due to apparent encroachment from Marc Bartra, but their protests were waved away, as the Spaniard's foot had not touched the turf inside the box at the exact point that Mbappe made contact with the ball.
The latter's spot-kick gaffe capped off a miserable performance both collectively and individually, as Mbappe missed four big chances and lost eight duels, statistics that saw him slammed in the French and Spanish media.
What have the French and Spanish media said about Kylian Mbappe?
✖️? ¡MBAPPÉ NO PUDO CONVERTIR DE PENAL Y REAL MADRID SIGUE 0-1 ABAJO ANTE BETIS SOBRE EL FINAL!
— ESPN Argentina (@ESPNArgentina) September 4, 2026
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Mbappe scored just 2/10 in the Journal du Real player ratings, which highlighted a "performance to forget" from the France international, accusing him of failing to step up to the plate when his side needed him most.
Mbappe's "stingy" pressing and "imprecise" technical quality were also lambasted, while Le Parisien acknowledged that the attacker had experienced a "rare night" of joylessness in front of goal.
Foot Mercato highlighted Mbappe's "astonishing" miss after Vinicius Junior laid the ball on a plate for his attacking colleague, as with the goalkeeper out of the equation, his first weak shot hit a Betis defender before he was also thwarted on the follow-up.
Spanish outlet ELDesmarque was the harshest of the low, awarding Mbappe a meagre 1/10 owing to his "wasteful" finishing and "selfish" play with the ball at his feet in dangerous areas.
What did Jose Mourinho say about Kylian Mbappe?
Head coach Mourinho, on the other hand, refused to outright criticise Mbappe for his underwhelming display, instead taking issue with the refereeing decisions that went against his side.
The Portuguese had no problems with the application of his players - barring a sense of 'naivety' - and specifically referenced the Mbappe penalty incident in his post-game press conference.
"The Betis players are smarter than the Real Madrid players, who are pure, naive," Mourinho told reporters. "We’re naive in the sense that Betis players try to influence the referee's decision over the smallest things.
"But I'm very happy with my players, all of them. As a team, I really liked them, and individually I have absolutely nothing to criticise. And the missed penalty [by Mbappe] is like I always say: when one of us goes to take a penalty, we all go together."
Real Madrid are next in action at home to Inter Milan in Tuesday's Champions League opener, before hosting Rayo Vallecano in La Liga next Saturday.