Mbappe brothers endure contrasting Champions League nights as Kylian scores and Ethan sees red

Kylian Mbappe made a strong start to Real Madrid’s Champions League campaign by scoring against Inter Milan, while his younger brother Ethan Mbappe endured a dramatic night with Lille that shifted from an assist to a red card in the space of 44 minutes.

Kylian opened the scoring in the 14th minute of Real Madrid’s match against Inter after capitalising on a defensive mistake and firing past the Italian side’s goalkeeper. The goal gave Real Madrid an early lead at the start of their league-phase campaign.

According to Opta, the strike took Mbappe’s Champions League total to 71 goals. That moved him level with Raul Gonzalez and placed him among the competition’s five highest scorers of all time.

The France forward also scored his first Champions League goal of the current season, underlining his intention to challenge strongly to retain the competition’s leading-scorer title.

At the same time, Ethan Mbappe appeared to be enjoying an equally promising beginning for Lille against Real Betis. The 19-year-old made an immediate impact by creating the opening goal in the 12th minute.

Ethan delivered an accurate cross towards the far post, where Japanese forward Ayase Ueda converted to put Lille ahead. Opta described it as Ethan’s first assist in the Champions League.

However, the match soon took a difficult turn for Lille. Real Betis recovered from their slow start and overturned the deficit to lead 3-2, after the score had been level at 2-2. The Spanish side scored their third goal in the 53rd minute.

Only three minutes later, Ethan was sent off. His European appearance ended in painful fashion as Lille were left with 10 players while attempting to fight their way back into the match.

Opta added: “Ethan Mbappe (19 years and 253 days) is the youngest player representing a French club to be sent off in the Champions League.”

The incident was also reviewed by VAR. Spanish account Archivo VAR said Ethan had struck Natan with his elbow after the Lille player had been spoken to by the defender.

It said: “The video assistant referee used the magnifying glass in the Lille and Real Betis match. Ethan Mbappe elbowed Natan after the defender said something to him.”

The account added: “This is a serious mistake. A yellow card for the defender for provoking him, and a red card for the French player because of his aggression.”

The contrasting fortunes of the brothers were also highlighted by MisterChip, who wrote: “The Mbappe family has recorded 97 direct involvements in the Champions League (96 for Kylian and one for Ethan) and one sending-off (0 for Kylian and one for Ethan).”

Kylian’s goal and Ethan’s assist meant both brothers made a statistical mark on the same Champions League night, but Ethan’s dismissal ensured their evenings ended in sharply different circumstances.