Mbappé scores three in forty minutes and the Bernabéu barely needs the ball

Real Madrid's postponed opener drew 72,226 people to the Bernabéu, and Kylian Mbappé gave them a goal every twenty minutes from the 40th onwards.

He opened it on 40. Luka Sucic replied for Real Sociedad on 44, which turned out to be the last competitive thing that happened. Mbappé scored again on 60, Vinícius Júnior made it three on 68, and Mbappé completed the hat-trick on 80.

Not a possession win — a finishing one

The possession split was 51-49. That is the least Real Madrid thing about the evening. Everything else was emphatic: 20 shots to ten, eleven on target to three, 46 touches in the opposition box to 15, five big chances created to none.

Expected goals finished 3.14 to 0.57, and the xG on target of 3.98 says the finishing was better than the chances. Real Sociedad's goalkeeper made seven saves and still conceded four.

Match facts

• 40' — Kylian Mbappé (Real Madrid)
• 44' — Luka Sucic (Real Sociedad)
• 60' — Kylian Mbappé (Real Madrid)
• 68' — Vinícius Júnior (Real Madrid)
• 80' — Kylian Mbappé (Real Madrid)

What's next

Six points from two matches puts Real Madrid top of LaLiga on goal difference, ahead of Sevilla and Real Betis, who also have perfect records. Real Sociedad are bottom: two matches, two defeats, one goal scored and five conceded.

Three more wins for Madrid, then a first defeat

Four days later, Real Madrid made it three wins in a row. Newly promoted Málaga arrived at the Bernabéu for matchday 3, and Jude Bellingham opened the scoring after dribbling past three defenders inside 19 minutes. Seven minutes later a Madrid attack forced Málaga's goalkeeper into his own net, Kylian Mbappé volleyed in a Trent Alexander-Arnold cross to make it three by the half-hour, and Arda Güler added a fourth in stoppage time. Real Madrid had 19 shots to Málaga's 14 — not one of the visitors' attempts was on target.

The run ended on matchday 4, away at Real Betis. Madrid again had the better of the shot count, 18 to 11, and a 3.16 xG to 0.96, but Troy Parrott turned in a rebound off the crossbar in the 81st minute, a Carlos Espí equaliser was chalked off by VAR for offside, and Betis goalkeeper Álvaro Valles saved a stoppage-time Kylian Mbappé penalty. The 1-0 defeat was Real Madrid's first competitive loss since José Mourinho returned for a second spell in charge.

Real Sociedad's first points came three matchdays later

This 4-1 defeat left Real Sociedad without a point, and matchday 2 did not help: Rodrigo Riquelme's 63rd-minute goal beat them 1-0 at Real Betis, even though Sociedad had produced the better expected-goals numbers, 1.40 to Betis' 1.06, and hit the woodwork once themselves.

Matchday 3 finally turned it around. Ander Barrenetxea scored away at Espanyol inside four minutes, Roberto Fernández equalised right on half-time, and Orri Óskarsson's 61st-minute goal settled a 2-1 win — Real Sociedad's first points of the season, taken off a side that had also lost its opener to this same Real Madrid team a week later.

Four rounds in, a shared 9 points and a rescheduled derby still to come

Real Madrid sit third on 9 points from four matches — three wins and that one defeat — level on points with Real Betis but ahead of them on goal difference, +7 against level. Barcelona lead the table on 12 points from four straight wins. Real Sociedad, whose rescheduled matchday-4 fixture against Elche had still to be played, sit 14th on 3 points from three games: one win, two defeats, three goals scored and six conceded.