Real Madrid drew Osasuna 0-0 in Pamplona earlier this year, and they had a similar result at the Santiago Bernabeu. There was no snow, but there was yet another frustrating low block to meet Los Blancos. Osasuna have played quite well this season, and David Garcia and Co. played out of their minds defensively to frustrate Real.
It was a departure from the performance we saw last week against Shakhtar Donetsk, and Real were not as effective in transition as they were this weekend at Barcelona.
Here are the player ratings from the 0-0 draw at the Bernabeu.
GK Thibaut Courtois
The Real Madrid goalkeeper didn’t have to make any outrageous stops, as Osasuna barely cared to attack. He did have a couple of nice sweeper actions, though, and was positive on the ball.
Rating: 6.5
LB Ferland Mendy
Ferland Mendy has been excellent since returning from injury, quite literally changing the team’s structure and defense for the better. He does, however, struggle with his crossing, and that was the case against Osasuna. Mendy just could not find an accurate delivery and was thus subbed in the second half for the veteran Marcelo. That said, he did not play poorly and did a good job of providing width and accurate passing on the ground to support Vinicius Junior.
Rating: 6.5
CB David Alaba
David Alaba had a quiet match. We did not see him make any standout plays offensively like he did in El Clasico, but he passed and defended well for the team. The former Bayern Munich man is one of the most consistent players on the team.
Rating: 7.0
CB Eder Militao
Eder Militao was arguably the best player on the pitch for Real Madrid, essentially standing toe-to-toe with David Garcia’s work on the visitors’ end. The Brazilian center back is having a sensational season, and he had another lights-out performance on Wednesday night. Militao helped the team offensively with some charging runs and one positive effort on goal. Thus, he finished the match with three dribbles completed and a shot on target. Militao also had four clearances and often won the ball to stop counters before they could develop.
Rating: 8.0
RB Dani Carvajal
Dani Carvajal cannot be blamed for Osasuna’s best chance of the match, in which Jon Moncayola somehow hit the post. The Spanish right back actually did a great job of covering to prevent Chimy Avila from hitting an early ball for a sure-fire goal. That said, Carvajal wasn’t at his best in this one, perhaps dragged down by having to work with the lethargic Marco Asensio on the right flank. But he can’t blame Asensio for the poor passing and his own lackadaisical work on the ball.
Rating: 5.0
CM Toni Kroos
Like Eder Militao, Toni Kroos was one of the few bright spots for Real Madrid vs. Osasuna. The German international took it upon himself to dictate play entirely from the left-hand side, as Real essentially had nothing going on the opposite flank. When they took out Eduardo Camavinga at the break for forward Rodrygo Goes, they committed to this approach. Kroos had a few great shots on goal from long distance, though it was always going to be difficult for him to score. He made plenty of teasing passes into the box, and you just wonder if he would have ended up with an assist (or two) had his teammates been more game in their off-the-ball movement.
Kroos attempted a whopping 118 passes, completing 112 of them. He had an incredible 16 of 18 accurate long balls. In total, he had two key passes. Those are impressive numbers, but they ring hollow in a match in which Real never scored.
Rating: 8.0
DM Casemiro
Casemiro often comes under fire for his passing, but he had eight of nine accurate long balls and a passing accuracy percentage of 88.4 in total. He won three tackles to lead the team and was all over the pitch defensively. Case even nearly scored a goal from beyond the halfway line, tweaking Sergio Herrera’s thigh as the keeper desperately tried to come back to defend a shot that was not far away. The defensive midfielder has returned to form since Kroos’ return to full strength, and this was another good performance from him.
Rating: 7.0
CM Eduardo Camavinga
Eduardo Camavinga had to be subbed at the break for Rodrygo Goes. Though he was admittedly lacking in sharpness in terms of his passing, the real reason for his substitution has to do with the threat of a red card. Camavinga had already been booked for an unnecessary challenge, and he kept on making reckless tackles thereafter. Carlo Ancelotti had no choice but to sub him. Camavinga is a calm player and does not usually make bad tackles, so the issue may be that the young man is too eager to force things in a Real Madrid shirt. Ancelotti is a very calming presence, so this will get sorted out in the near future.
Rating: 5.0
LW Vinicius Junior
Vinicius Junior had a very good game, in spite of the fact that Real Madrid carried almost no threat offensively. Because the offense was essentially either passing from Toni Kroos or one-on-one dribbling from Vinicius. The left winger took on the Osasuna defense head-on throughout the match, as it sometimes seemed like Vini was going on it alone against five men at a time. He led the team with three key passes, and, like Toni Kroos, you also get the feeling he deserved better from his teammates.
Rating: 7.5
CF Karim Benzema
I have to be honest and say that this was Karim Benzema’s worst performance of the season, though he has set such a ridiculously high bar this year that it’s not a huge insult. Benzema had some neat moments on the ball, and he even nearly created a goal from nothing that stands out as the closest Real Madrid came to scoring vs. Osasuna. That said, his positioning against teams that play ultra-defensive remains suspect. There were multiple times when someone looked to find the striker around the six-yard box, and Benzema was nowhere to be found. Despite a couple of aesthetic moments, Benzema didn’t create much that was meaningful, and you’d expect more from him.
Rating: 5.5
RW Marco Asensio
Marco Asensio was the worst starter on the pitch and genuinely had a stinker of a match, reinforcing the notion that he cannot be starting as a right winger for this team. But we already knew that. Although Asensio had a couple of positive moments, such as tracking back defensively on the Moncayola shot and making one nice run into the six-yard box, the bar is so low with him (opposite of Benz) that any remotely decent footballing move is praised. Asensio did not have much of an impact on the match as an attacking midfielder and was thus subbed off for Eden Hazard. Once again, Asensio just isn’t assertive enough as a forward.
Rating: 4.0
RW Rodrygo Goes
While Rodrygo Goes wasn’t lights-out in this match, he came in off the bench and was a major upgrade over Marco Asensio on the right side of the attack. He looked lively at times and made some very smart runs into the box, nearly creating a goal if the run to the backpost had have been there. Even so, you’d expect him to make more of an impact on the match, as the praise rings hollow when Asensio is the standard he is compared to.
Rating: 6.0
LB Marcelo
Marcelo is often a target for criticism, and some fans may have been surprised to see Carlo Ancelotti bring him on for Ferland Mendy. He probably did so for Marcelo’s crossing. But Marcelo did not impact the match enough despite playing well. The reason why I am ambivalent is while he made no mistakes and was active in the attack, he passed up two shooting opportunities to cross the ball to absolutely nobody. Those are wasted chances and poor decisions from a veteran player who was only brought in to attack and be ruthless against a mid-table side.
Rating: 6.0
RB Lucas Vazquez
Lucas Vazquez, per usual, was not short on effort, but he brought no end product to the table for Real Madrid. This was the definition of an average performance from the Galician wide man.
Rating: 6.0
AM Eden Hazard
I don’t know how much I can blame Eden Hazard, since this genuinely didn’t seem to be his game. But you’d expect a lot more from your 100 million euro man in a bench appearance against a team that you desperately need to score against. Real Madrid had loads of possession, yet the Belgian barely touched the ball. Aside from one nifty dribble, you’d scarcely know he was on the pitch. It truly takes something to be more invisible than Asensio, yet Hazard achieved that.
Rating: 4.5