Mbappe brace drives Real Madrid to victory against Athletic Bilbao

Kylian Mbappe netted two goals and provided an assist as Real Madrid defeated Athletic Bilbao 3-0, narrowing Barcelona's lead in La Liga to a single point on Wednesday.

Xabi Alonso's team ended a streak of three straight away league draws with an impressive performance at Athletic's San Mames stadium.

Mbappe struck first early in the match thanks to Trent Alexander-Arnold's initial La Liga assist, followed by Eduardo Camavinga heading in the second goal before halftime.

The French star added another in the second period, marking his 16th league strike this season and confirming Madrid's success.

"The team delivered a full performance today, staying focused throughout the 90 minutes... it might have been our strongest outing, in a tough venue at a crucial time, and we handled it steadily, now we need to keep going," Alonso said to the media.

"Following the draw against Girona last weekend, we recognised the importance of this match, and once we processed it, we will focus on the upcoming game versus Celta Vigo on Sunday.

"The schedule is intense, so you cannot dwell too much on events, whether in good times or challenging ones."

A downside for Los Blancos involved possible injuries to Alexander-Arnold and Camavinga during the second half, leading to their substitutions.

Mbappe had missed a spot-kick in this fixture last winter while adjusting to life at Madrid, later describing it as his lowest point, but this time Athletic faced what could be the planet's top talent.

"Kylian is in excellent shape, he grabbed two superb goals with his positioning, the link-up with Vini (Vinicius Junior) worked well, and the squad started aggressively from the outset to claim the win," Alonso continued.

Mbappe nearly put Real Madrid in front in the fourth minute, but Unai Simon pulled off a sharp stop at his near post, then blocked a shot from Vinicius.

Madrid pressed hard from the start against the eighth-placed Athletic and went ahead in the seventh minute via an outstanding Mbappe effort.

Alexander-Arnold lofted a precise long ball to the striker, who glided towards the area and slotted it neatly past Simon.

Gorka Guruzeta missed over the bar and made Thibaut Courtois stretch for a solid save during one of Athletic's infrequent attacks.

Their clearest opportunity arose from a partnership between Nico Williams and Alex Berenguer, yet Courtois made an outstanding denial on the latter.

Mbappe-Vini link-up

This spurred Madrid into action, regaining dominance and creating chances via Vinicius, who synced effectively with Mbappe.

The Brazilian winger struck the post's outer side with a low shot from an acute angle, as Simon rushed out to challenge.

The keeper then executed a brilliant intervention to stop Vinicius in a one-on-one after Eder Militao played him clear.

Madrid added their second just before the break through a slick team sequence, with Mbappe heading Alexander-Arnold's delivery across for Camavinga to nod in from close range.

Courtois palmed away Mikel Jauregizar's powerful long shot soon after the restart, preventing Athletic from gaining traction.

The initial concern for Madrid emerged when Alexander-Arnold seemed to suffer a muscle issue and was withdrawn for Raul Asencio.

Mbappe clinched the result with a distant strike that nestled at the near post, his 25th goal in all competitions. Simon could have done better to prevent it, possibly offsetting his prior strong saves.

Camavinga departed injured shortly after, marking another worry for ex-Real Sociedad man Alonso during an otherwise ideal trip to the Basque region against old adversaries.

The manager even received a friendly hug from Vinicius upon his substitution, despite recent tensions between them.

"They outpowered us," conceded Athletic's Inigo Lekue.

"We aimed to impose our style but failed, regardless of our efforts."