Marca: Mbappe is in the best period of his career and he has to prove himself when he returns to Anfield

November 4th This Wednesday, Real Madrid will challenge Liverpool away in the Champions League. "Marca" talked about Mbappe's missed penalty kick against Liverpool in the Champions League away game last season.

Less than a year ago, Anfield witnessed Mbappe's darkest night at Real Madrid. His performance plummeted: he kept losing the ball and was in no condition... and he also missed a key penalty kick.

At that time, Mbappe returned to the left wing, but his pace, power and unpredictable shooting ability seemed to have all disappeared that night for Liverpool. With Vinicius out injured, Mbappe had to lead the attack alongside Dias and Guler. But it all fell apart and Mbappe that night was just a shadow of the man who forced Real Madrid to do whatever it took to sign him.

After Liverpool scored, fate gave him a chance: Vazquez made a penalty kick. Mbappe took the ball and took responsibility. However, Kelleher correctly judged the direction and blocked the ball. The scene when Mbappe bowed his head at the penalty spot symbolized his lowest point since joining Real Madrid. The statistics cannot cover everything: two shots on goal, 18 of 24 passes completed (75%), 6 of 13 duels won, 15 goals conceded.

Before that game, the coaching staff was still hesitating about who should occupy the left-wing position, and Mbappe's performance finally solved this problem. His passing and ball-handling errors were frequent and he lacked confidence, spark and soul. Although he tried, he didn't have enough determination or courage to threaten Bradley, who made one of the best steals of his career in front of him.

His first mistake almost resulted in a goal, but thanks to Asensio's timely clearance, the game went downhill for him from then on. His last chance for redemption came in the 62nd minute, but Kelleher failed to give him that chance at Anfield.

"There is a medicine called patience. It was a difficult moment for him, especially after missing the penalty kick. Everyone must support him." Ancelotti tried to protect him at the post-match press conference. Today, everything is different. Mbappe is in the best period of his career, perhaps the most glorious yet.

He is the leader of Real Madrid, the absolute core, and every offense can be turned into a threat. In the league, he scored 13 goals in 11 games and a total of 18 goals in 14 games. Averaged 1.29 goals per game, comparable to Ronaldo.

He has scored in eight consecutive rounds, second only to Ronaldo's ten rounds in the 2014/15 season. The next games are against Rayo Vallecano and Elche. If he can continue to score, he will tie the record. Against Girona, he has a chance to break the record.

He has scored 44 goals in his first 45 games in La Liga: this is the best start since Puskas (44 goals in 44 games), even surpassing Ronaldo (43 goals in 45 games). Therefore, returning to Anfield means revenge for him, this time he has to prove himself.