Real Madrid: Grading every fullback from the 2020-2021 season

RB Lucas Vazquez

There’s a case to be made that Lucas Vazquez was the best right back in LaLiga before suffering a season-ending injury in the final minutes of the first half of El Clasico. Vazquez assisted Karim Benzema’s world-class backheel goal to open the scoring against Barcelona, and he played so well in that game he was in WhoScored’s Team of the Week despite not even playing the full first half.

Vazquez had his rough moments defensively, as he could not understand the full nuances of a foreign position to him. But at the end of the day, he was very, very good, and Real Madrid were significantly worse without him, especially in terms of their creation.

The numbers don’t lie. Vazquez was one of only four players with at least five assists in LaLiga this season, and he was second on the team behind Toni Kroos with 1.8 key passes per game. He was also third in dribbles completed per game and fifth in fouls drawn per game. Throw in his team-high 2.5 tackles per game (tied with Casemiro), and you have a guy who was one of Real Madrid’s best players in 2020-2021.

One season earlier, many of us were wondering if Vazquez would have to go in the summer 2020 transfer market. And after this season, not only are we glad Zinedine Zidane convinced the club to keep him around, but we’re hoping the team ponies up the cash to keep him.

Vazquez has proven valuable to the squad, and it is not a stretch to say that he was the best fullback at Real Madrid this season. The fight he showed in the biggest games, including both wins over Barcelona, will always be remembered, even if he leaves the club.

Rating: 8.0