Real Madrid: Player Ratings from a 3-1 win against Athletic Club

Real Madrid continues their resurgence in the 2020/2021 season with a 3-1 win against Athletic Club at Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano.

Real Madrid started the game brightly, and an early red card to Raul Garcia made it seem like it was going to be an easy outing for Los Blancos. However, Athletic Club did not make it easy for the Merengues as the Basque club defended in numbers an occasional troubled Real Madrid through counter-attacks. Zinedine Zidane’s men controlled large parts of the game and mitigated through sporadic Athletic attacks to win the game 3-1 at home.

Here is how the Real Madrid players performed.

Manager

Zinedine Zidane – 7.5/10

Zidane opted for continuity in his team as he started the same eleven from Saturday except for Federico Valverde replacing the suspended Casemiro. Although Athletic Club’s organized defense a physicality gave Real Madrid some trouble, Zidane’s team looked comfortable in possession, and he will be happy to see his players create plenty of goal scoring opportunities.

Players

Thibaut Courtois – 8/10

Thibaut Courtois could not have done much to prevent Athletic Club’s goal, but he came up big to deny Mikel Vesga from equalizing in the 90th minute. The Belgian giant has time and again produced spectacular saves when called on.

Dani Carvajal – 7.5/10

Carvajal played the ball for Karim Benzema’s header for the game-winner. He looked good in defense with two interceptions and a tackle in the match. He also completed three dribbles.

Raphael Varane – 7/10

Raphael Varane had several tricky moments when dueling with Inaki Willaims, and the Basque striker might have been on his mind keeping him from closing down Capa sooner for Athletic’s first goal. Apart from that, Varane got the better of the Williams, winning five out of five aerial duels, completed three clearances, and made two blocks.

Sergio Ramos – 7/10

Varane was not the only one at fault for the Athletic Club’s only goal. Ramos found himself stepping up and on the wrong side of the ball that allowed Capa to find the space behind and capitalize. However, similar to his defensive partner, El Capitan dealt with almost everything else. He won four aerial duels, made four clearances, and completed three interceptions.

Ferland Mendy – 7/10

Ferland Mendy once again proved to be a reliable presence in the left-back position except for one instance late in the second half. Other than that, he kept things tight and did not let much past him. He completed two tackles, two interceptions, and had two key passes.

Fede Valverde – 6.5/10

Fede Valverde got his first start back from injury and put on a decent shift. We did not see anything spectacular, and it might be a few games before he returns to his sensational self. He won two tackles, two interceptions, and provided two key passes.

Luka Modric – 7.5/10

Modric completed three key passes, and one of them turned into the assist for the third goal. He also looked splendid next to Toni Kroos and helped control the game for Real Madrid.

Toni Kroos – 8.5/10

It was another brilliant performance by the German. Toni Kroos hardly puts a foot wrong when he is in this sort of form. He completed 97 percent of his passes, had the most touches, created one big chance, and scored the opener for Real Madrid, per Whoscored.com.

Lucas Vazquez – 6.5/10

It was a subdued game for Lucas Vazquez after coming from the heels of two huge performances against Borussia Monchengladbach and Atletico Madrid. He still worked hard and managed to create two key passes.

Vinicius Junior – 7/10

Vinicius worked hard and got involved in the majority of Real Madrid sequences in the final third. He also played the pass for Toni Kroos’ goal that opened the scoring for Los Blancos. However, Madridista’s will hope that he improves his decision making in the attacking half sooner rather than later.

Karim Benzema – 9/10

Zidane would be ecstatic to see Karim Benzema returning to the goal scoring form of last season. The French forward scored a brace, including the winner. He also dropped deep when needed and made some excellent runs over the 90 minutes.

Substitutes

Marco Asensio – 6

Asensio entered the match in the 63rd minute in place of Vinicius. He played some nice passes and was a reliable two-way presence.

Isco – 6.5/10

Isco came in for Valverde and looked very involved. He looked to play vertical passes and kept the ball moving. The Spaniard completed all 33 of his passes, won two duels, and had a key pass.

Rodrygo – N/A

Rodrygo replaced Vazquez for the last fifteen minutes and almost got an assist.