Kylian Mbappé has refused to criticise the referee in charge of Real Madrid’s 2-1 derby defeat to Atlético Madrid, despite admitting that official Miguel Ángel Ortiz Arias made “mistakes” in his handling of the match.
Madrid coach José Mourinho claimed on Sunday that Ortiz Arias had failed to show “two clear red cards” for rough, first-half challenges by Kang-in Lee and Cristian Romero, bringing a printout with photos of the incidents into his post-game news conference.
The result left Madrid six points behind LaLiga leaders Barcelona with just seven games played going into the international break — with a Clásico to come at Camp Nou in October — leaving Mourinho under pressure already in his second spell at the Bernabéu.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been a player who talks much about referees,” Mbappé told Diario AS in an interview in Switzerland, where he has agreed a new sponsorship deal with the brand On.
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“I’m not going to start now. I have my own thoughts, but I’ll keep them to myself… Referees are human, they make mistakes — and those were mistakes — but I don’t want to get into that.”
Romero was shown a yellow card for treading on Jude Bellingham’s knee — after a VAR check, when Bellingham had initially been cautioned for the clash — while Lee escaped punishment for a high boot on Federico Valverde‘s ankle.
Atlético then went ahead in the second half at the Metropolitano through Alejandro Grimaldo’s penalty after Dean Huijsen had been sent off, before Jonathan David made it 2-0, and then Antonio Rüdiger pulled a late goal back for Madrid.
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It’s a second defeat for Mourinho’s side this season, after losing 1-0 at Real Betis earlier this month.
“[It’s] a step backwards,” Mbappé said, when asked about the derby loss. “It’s very tough, we wanted to win, and we knew what kind of game it would be.
“But the team gave everything, and we’re moving forward, because there’s still a long way to go this season, and we have to stay on the right track… We have to work, and do more. We have to put the work in.”
Mbappé will now join up for international duty with France under new coach Zinedine Zidane, who was one of the forward’s childhood idols.
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Zidane — who has replaced long-term boss Didier Deschamps — was working behind-the-scenes at Madrid when Mbappé first went on trial to the Spanish capital as a youngster.
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“It’s a new era with a new coach,” Mbappé said. “The Nations League is coming up, with four matches to see how things go, and it’ll be a new experience for everyone, because we’ve only ever known Deschamps. It’ll be a change for us, but I think everything will go really well.
“[Zidane] was the first person to pick me up and take me to Real Madrid, to the training complex, when I was 13 or 14, it was a long time ago.
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“And now he’s my national team coach. It’s like something out of a movie, but it’s amazing. We’re in a new process with France. We have two years to prepare for the Euros.”
Mbappé has talked up his chances of winning the 2026 men’s Ballon d’Or in recent days, after breaking the record for career World Cup goals this summer.
“I think I’ve already said everything there is to say about it,” he said, ahead of next month’s ceremony. “People weren’t happy when I talked about it too much, but it is what it is. I’m at ease with it, calm, because I did everything I could. Now, it’s just a matter of waiting.”
