Lee Kang-in Scores 2nd League Goal, Ahead of Madrid Derby on 20th... Anticipation Builds for Clash With Mbappé

As Lee Kang-in (Atlético Madrid) scored his second goal in the Spanish professional football league, La Liga, fans are paying keen attention to whether a showdown will take place between him and his former Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) teammate Kylian Mbappé (Real Madrid) ahead of the season's first Madrid Derby.

Atlético Madrid will play a home match against Real Madrid for the 2026-2027 La Liga Round 7 at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano stadium in Madrid, Spain, at 11:15 PM on the 20th, Korea time.

Atlético is ranked 3rd in La Liga with 4 wins, 1 draw, and 1 loss (13 points), while Real Madrid (15 points) is in 2nd place.

Depending on the result of this weekend's Madrid Derby, it is an important match that could allow Atlético to jump up to 2nd place.

In past Madrid Derbies, Real Madrid leads with 120 wins, 64 draws, and 60 losses.

Last season, they met three times, with Real Madrid leading 2 wins to 1 loss.

In their first encounter at the Spanish Super Cup in January of last year, Real Madrid won 2-1.

They were evenly matched in the regular league, as Atlético claimed a resounding 5-2 victory in Round 7 of La Liga, while Real Madrid won 3-2 in Round 29.

The matches were fiercely contested, with a total of 9 yellow cards handed out between both teams in their first La Liga meeting last season, and 1 red card and 5 yellow cards given in their second encounter.

As this is the first Madrid Derby of the season, both teams are expected to hold nothing back to gain the psychological upper hand.

For local fans, attention is focused on whether Lee Kang-in, who plays for Atlético, can succeed in hunting for goals in two consecutive matches.

Having left Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) last July to wear the Atlético uniform, Lee Kang-in made a spectacular debut by scoring a stunning left-footed curling shot in the opening match against Málaga, achieving a debut match and debut goal for Atlético.

After recording his first assist in Round 3 against Sevilla, he completed his first full-match appearance and scored his second league goal in Round 6 against Osasuna, securing a 2-0 win for the team.

In particular, as Real Madrid features Mbappé, widely regarded as one of the world's top strikers, attention is drawn to whether a match between Lee Kang-in and Mbappé will take place.

Lee Kang-in and Mbappé shared a good chemistry while playing together at PSG during the 2023-2024 season.

Having joined PSG in August 2023, Lee Kang-in delivered a precise through ball to Mbappé during the regular league Round 10 match against Brest on October 29 of that year, which Mbappé converted into a goal, marking Lee's first assist since joining PSG.

In Round 11, Lee caught a ball laid off by Mbappé and scored his first league goal with a left-footed shot.

Lee Kang-in also showed great teamwork with Mbappé by connecting a sharp pass to him to help score against Real Sociedad in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 second leg on March 26, 2024.

When Lee Kang-in won a gold medal at the Asian Games in October 2023, Mbappé was the first among his PSG teammates to send congratulatory messages on social media.

Their partnership came to an end when Mbappé transferred to Real Madrid in June 2024.

However, as Lee Kang-in transferred to Atlético this season, the two will continue their relationship by reuniting as rivals instead of teammates.

Up to Round 6 of this season's La Liga, Mbappé has scored 7 goals, placing him tied for 2nd in scoring alongside Lamine Yamal (Barcelona, 7 goals) and behind Raphinha (Barcelona, 9 goals).

(Photo: Getty Images)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.