Real Madrid was having a flying start to their season which continued into September after the brief International break. However, their high-flying form was cut down and brought to the ground with two back-to-back disappointing games towards the end of the month. First, it was a 0-0 draw against Villarreal in LaLiga and then a 1-2 defeat at hands of the Moldovan side, FC Sheriff Tiraspol in the Champions League. Both of them took place at the home ground, Santiago Bernabeu.
Don Carlo may have to reassess his plans for the season and make some changes for the team to react in the best way posssible when they face Espanyol away from home in the first game of October. Madridistas hope this disappointing patch doesn’t worsen and Real Madrid go back to normal against the Catalan side. September thus remained a mixed month with fair shares of shocks, both positive and otherwise. Here are the top five performers of the month.
David Alaba and Eder Militao, Real Madrid (Photo by Denis Doyle/Getty Images)
5. CB Eder Militao / David Alaba
It’s a tie for the number five between the two central defenders for Real Madrid, David Alaba and Eder Militao, who are settling into becoming the club’s mainstay for at least until the next transfer window. It has been a hard transition for both these players especially when they are asked to play a high line and defend, knowing that yards of green grass just sit behind them and there can be a counter at any given moment.
The central defensive partnership between these two has been to a certain extent, symbiotic. While Eder Militao’s game is stronger in the air, David Alaba does a better job withholding opponents and clearing any danger. Alaba’s game while playing out from the back is exceptional where he relies a lot on long balls. Militao, on the other hand, has a better closing-in speed that helps while breaking up counters.
The defense has been a hit-or-miss so far for Los Blancos but they have secured two clean sheets in the month and that should be a step in the right direction. Both Alaba and Militao have maintained an above seven match rating in all of their appearances throughout the month, per SofaScore. And, keeping in mind that these two have been regulars in the starting line-up, they deserve to land a spot on this list. There hasn’t been a brighter spot in defense other than them.
4. GK Thibaut Courtois
Sitting a spot above the bottom on number four is Real Madrid’s ever-reliable Belgian wall, Thibaut Courtois. Real Madrid’s defense is looking like the one aspect of play that is under continuous scrutiny. With a transitioning central-defensive partnership in front of him, Courtois has done his best to keep Real Madrid where they are at this point in the season.
He produced two absolute master-class performances, one against Inter Milan on Champions League Matchday 1 and the next against Villarreal in LaLiga. Both these games ended with clean sheets for the men in white. Real Madrid conceded a total of six goals in September and for most of them, the Belgian wasn’t at fault, the defense has been that problematic for Carlo Ancelotti’s men.
He now has an identical save percentage of 75 in both LaLiga and Champions League, per Fbref. Though the numbers aren’t as impressive yet, Courtois has done incredibly well to adapt to the squad’s changes in play. He is also becoming a leader at the back for Los Blancos and is facing the media with regularity whenever the team fails to perform. He is an important asset to this club and he did his job amazingly well in September. With a little more work in the defensive organization, his numbers are bound to improve.
3. CM Federico Valverde
Real Madrid’s midfield saw a lot of changes within the games in September. Marco Asensio scored a hat-trick against his former club, Mallorca, and then went anonymous in the next game against Villarreal. Eduardo Camavinga acted as a game-changer off the bench but has struggled to have a similar impact on starts. Casemiro had a horrible spell of form and his long shots were an eye-sore for fans. Luka Modric played a few where he has below his standards but yet, did a decent enough job to see the team though.
But, if there has been one true bright spot in midfield, it has to be Fede Valverde. The Uruguayan has had more progressive carries (7.04 per 90) into the final third than any other midfielder in the squad. He was given a huge responsibility at right-back in the game against Valencia where even though he struggled to find his role, he did end up doing decently and walked out with a 7.1 match rating, per SofaScore.
He played a major role in finding that winner against Inter Milan at San Siro and also registered an assist in the first game of the month against Celta Vigo for Karim Benzema to equalize minutes after conceding. He has been pulling off a few of his usual tricks. Valverde is linking up well with the attack and in showing signs of maturity down the flanks with his sharp one-twos.
The Uruguayan is winning ground duels with more regularity and is also attempting long balls. He is doing his best to be that missing link in midfield for Real Madrid as their shape in the middle of the park has looked inexistent at times. The return of Toni Kroos is where all our hopes lie. Hopefully, Valverde can continue his good work alongside the German too.
2. LW Vinicius Junior
The top two don’t change. They are the same two as last month. However, there have been developments that we may need to take note of. Firstly, Vinicius Junior continued being the most dangerous attacking individual on the pitch in all the games in September. However, he did struggle to find the final ball against stronger opponents. He is doing what he does, being pacey on the ball and dribbling his way into more 1v1s.
Another major problem has been his wastefulness. At times, it seemed like there were better-placed teammates he could’ve passed the ball to but he chooses to go all the way and that leads to sloppy giveaways. He has been instructed to shoot early and take chances on but a balance of things still would be desirable moving forward. His wastefulness has been a general frustration for fans recently.
That being said, it is still true that Vinicius has been Real Madrid’s most dangerous attacker so far in the season. He scored a brilliant goal against Celta Vigo in the first game of the month and then created all sorts of problems for Inter at San Siro. He had an assist for Isco in a 6-1 win over Mallorca. But, his best performance was against Valencia where he scored the winner via a Karim Benzema assist and then assisted the Frenchman for his winner. He ended the game being adjudged the Man of the Match.
Even in the disappointing home loss to Sheriff last time out, he won the penalty which led to Real’s solitary goal on the night. Vini only needs to control his wastefulness and keep working his way towards better decision-making. Fans do not like to see the signs of the old Vini coming back and we hope that the upcoming month is a good one for the prodigy.
1. CF Karim Benzema
Leading the month’s best performers list for the second time in a row is Real Madrid’s on-field captain and their main man forward, Karim Benzema. He had another great month, but he struggled with the team in the two final matches of the month including a very rare poor game against Villarreal. He was better against Sheriff but failed to make the difference. He did score the penalty won by Vinicius Junior that took him to 72 Champions League goals for the club, one more than Raul. He has now scored in 17 consecutive Champions League Campaigns.
Benzema started the month with a hat-trick against Celta Vigo in their 5-2 victory where Los Blancos came back from a 1-2 deficit in the first half. He continued doing ‘Big Benz’ things against Inter but couldn’t make a big enough mark on the game. He then combined with Vinicius for one of the best comeback performances in LaLiga in a 1-2 away win at the Mestalla.
Benzema continued in the same form, chipping in goals and assists as he had another of the 10/10 nights at the Bernabeu against Mallorca. He scored two goals while assisting Marco Asensio for two and helped him to achieve his first-ever Real Madrid hat-trick. Real Madrid needs their leader to continue in the same form into the next month.
The season just got a lot more alive after two reality check games. The positive however is that Real Madrid’s mainstay midfield looks to be back and that would give King Karim a further boost. He loves playing alongside Kroos and Modric. With Real Madrid’s first-choice starting XI regaining shape, we anticipate better things to come for Real Madrid. As I said, the season just got a lot more alive and it is up to King Karim and his white army to step their game up a gear.