After David Alaba’s free kick goal nestled into the back of the net, Real Madrid cruised to victory. They avenged an earlier 2-1 loss to Sheriff in the competition with a dominant performance on the road. With this 3-0 win, Real have now qualified for the Champions League knockout stages, where it seems a date with PSG could await them.
Here are the player ratings from Los Merengues’ impressive performance, featuring yet another masterful display from world-class center midfielder Toni Kroos.
GK Thibaut Courtois
Thibaut Courtois was not threatened for much of the match, but you always know he’ll get called into action sooner rather than later. He was more than up to the task of stopping Adama Traore on one occasion. But I’d like to praise Courtois more for his distribution, such as a quick throw to Vinicius Junior that nearly led to something. He looked very comfortable with the ball at his feet on Wednesday night.
Rating: 7.0
LB Ferland Mendy
Picked up an assist for Karim Benzema’s goal to make things 3-0 for Real Madrid. Defensively, Mendy was as solid as ever, and he got better offensively as the match went on. That was enough to make up for some horrible crosses, including one laughably poor one early in the match that led to a counter for Sheriff.
Rating: 7.0
CB David Alaba
David Alaba benefited from a deflection, but his free kick was well-hit and dangerous. A deserved second goal in a Real Madrid shirt for him, and it opened the scoring for Los Blancos. Composed as ever defensively, Alaba was troubled by nothing and had license to get forward.
Rating: 7.0
CB Eder Militao
An excellent performance at the back from Eder Militao. The young center back made some perfect recoveries, reading the game well to help his teammates defend the constant threat of Traore. Militao did not have much to do, in truth, as Real Madrid were so dominant that they finally gave their defense a real break.
Rating: 7.5
RB Dani Carvajal
After excelling in his last two matches, Dani Carvajal kept the good times rolling against Sheriff. He was all over the pitch, supporting attacks and making crucial defensive interventions. Whenever Los Blancos lose possession, you can always count on the Spanish international to immediately press, recover, or do whatever is necessary to win it back. And you need those players in the XI.
Carvajal had one especially brilliant play in the second half where he made a Sergio Ramos-esque tackle, spun with the ball at his feet to keep it in bounds and avoid the corner, and then made a good pass in his own box to help get it clear.
Rating: 8.0
CM Toni Kroos
Toni Kroos was one of the stars of the show yet again. The German international scored a brilliant goal with the side of his foot, hitting the underside of the bar in the very top right corner of the goal. Vintage stuff.
And speaking of vintage, the same can be said about the No. 8’s control of the match. Kroos attempted a whopping 117 passes, completing over 95 percent of them. He was eight for ten on long passes. Kroos even defended well, tracking back smartly to make an interception look easy that stopped a sure-fire goal on the counter.
Rating: 8.5
CDM Casemiro
Casemiro continued his strong form with a great performance against Sheriff on both ends of the pitch. He covered a lot of ground defensively and was usually there to cut out any danger. Best of all, his passing and decision-making on the ball were crisp offensively. When Casemiro plays well, Real Madrid look like a well-oiled machine.
The 29-year-old completed 97 percent of his passes and led the team with an impressive six tackles. He also added two interceptions, five clearances, and a pair of fouls drawn. It was a tidy performance from the No. 6.
Rating: 8.0
CM Luka Modric
Luka Modric rounded up the world-class midfield trio on the right-hand side with an equally majestic performance. The Croatian star had two tackles and an interception to make his presence felt defensively. He was crisp with his passing, even completing five of six long passes. And Modric led Real Madrid with five dribbles completed.
Moreover, it was an unselfish performance from the 36-year-old, who yielded the best playmaking positions in order to provide with on the right-hand side so that Rodrygo Goes to attack centrally. This approach paid off big-time, as Rodrygo had arguably his best match of the season. Modric was no slouch either.
Rating: 8.0
LW Vinicius Junior
Vinicius Junior had his quietest match of the season on the stat sheet, but he still won three dribbles and played a key role in the second goal of the match by combining with fellow winger Rodrygo Goes. It was Rodrygo’s time to shine in this match, but Vini still had a solid game.
Even when he isn’t dominating or blowing by defenders, Vinicius can still have a positive impact with his work rate and intelligent play. His positioning and short passing were very important in this match, and he reminded everyone of his maturity and well-rounded ability, even if he was not the biggest goal threat at Sheriff.
Rating: 7.0
CF Karim Benzema
Karim Benzema nearly had a beautiful headed assist late in the match for Marco Asensio, making a header behind him to a teammate look elementary. The No. 9 seems to have a sixth sense for where his teammates are. He worked hard in this one and got the goal he deserved, finishing perfectly into the left-hand corner of the net with a swerving shot that dipped below and away from Sheriff’s talented goalkeeper. In total, Benzema had two key passes.
Rating: 7.5
RW Rodrygo Goes
Rodrygo Goes did so brilliantly to help Toni Kroos score Real Madrid’s second of the night. He was an ever-present danger to the compact Sheriff defense and one of the most effective players on the pitch for either team. Rodrygo tends to bring his best in the Champions League, and this display in Moldova was no exception. There was a lot of good passing from Rodrygo, as well as bits and pieces of his dribbling skills.
Sheriff could not cope with Rodrygo, who often drifted inside and did a great job of getting into key areas in and around the penalty box. You can always count on Rodrygo to contribute something positive in each match he starts, and he contributed a great deal to this road victory in the Champions League. As usual, he did not neglect his defensive duties either, winning a tackle and three interceptions. Sublime stuff from the young winger.
Rating: 8.5