After Mbappe broke the record, Ronaldo immediately responded in a certain way.

Kylian Mbappé equaled Real Madrid’s single-year scoring record and earned praise from Cristiano Ronaldo, reinforcing his prominence during Xabi Alonso’s tenure as coach.

Cristiano Ronaldo showed his excitement by praising Kylian Mbappé after the French forward matched the club’s record for the most goals scored in a calendar year.

Entering the match against Sevilla on the morning of December 21, Mbappé needed just one more goal to reach 59 goals for Real Madrid in 2025 — the highest tally in the club’s history for a single year and an all-time record previously held by Ronaldo himself. However, the French star had to wait until the 86th minute to score the decisive goal from the penalty spot.

After scoring, Mbappé couldn’t hide his excitement as he recreated Ronaldo’s famous “siu” celebration. After the match, he dedicated the goal to his “idol.” On social media, Mbappé posted a series of celebration photos along with a childhood photo with Ronaldo, and shared the message: “Believe in your dreams. Honor Cristiano.” Right below the post, Ronaldo left two emojis — raised hands and fire — as a congratulatory gesture to Mbappé.

The 2-0 victory over Sevilla also helped ease some pressure on coach Xabi Alonso, who is facing the risk of losing his position following a series of underwhelming performances and results. Despite ongoing questions about Real Madrid’s overall quality under Alonso, no one can deny Mbappé’s impressive goal-scoring form.

The penalty goal marked Mbappé’s 30th since Alonso took charge in the summer, reaching this milestone in just 27 matches. In fact, Alonso is the coach under whom Mbappé has achieved his best scoring rate in his career. Previously, no other coach had seen Mbappé average more than one goal per game.

Under former coach Carlo Ancelotti, Mbappé scored 43 goals in 56 matches, but he now has the chance to surpass that milestone while playing under Alonso.

“Mbappé always wants to make an impact, and that’s very positive for his teammates,” Alonso commented. “This is a historic milestone. I congratulate him and wish Mbappé all the best in 2026.”