Real Madrid player ratings from a 0-0 draw away at Anoeta against Real Sociedad.
La Liga is on its second week of the 2020/2021 season, and Real Madrid arrived at Anoeta for their first action of the new season. Zinedine Zidane dished out another surprise for the Madridista’s as he started Martin Odegaard and benched Casemiro in the midfield. Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo Goes got the start either side of Karim Benzema in the absence of Eden Hazard and Marco Asensio.
Los Blancos had an encouraging first half with the team pressing high and fluid in their movements. However, the Royal Whites did not take advantage of their dominance. Real Madrid came into the match with a shorter pre-season and only one warm-up game against Getafe, and it showed in the second half. Los Blancos lost steam in the second 45 and came away from Anoeta with just one point to their name. Zidane will have to work on the offensive end to find goals consistently when Karim Benzema is not firing. Here is how the players performed.
Manager
Zinedine Zidane – 6/10
Zidane put out an attacking elven and got it right. Los Blancos started bright, controlled possession, and played with fluidity. However, his substitutions were questionable as the players got tired and lost control of the game.
Real Madrid needed goal scorers on the pitch as they chased the three points against La Real. However, Zidane left Luka Jovic and Borja Mayoral on the bench while introducing academy players Marvin Park and Sergio Arribas instead.
Goalkeeper
Thibaut Courtois – 7/10
Thibaut Courtois started the season right off where he left last season. The three-time Zamora trophy winner gave a standard performance in between the sticks, which included a fantastic one-on-one save against Alexander Isak to keep the score at nil-nil.