Real Madrid Player Ratings as Thibaut Courtois, Luka Modric dominate Atletico Madrid
Real Madrid fans were nervous about a scary stretch of games against Sevilla, Athletic Club, Real Sociedad, Inter Milan, and Atletico Madrid.
And Los Blancos went ahead and beat every single one of those teams. No losses. Not even a draw. And all but Sevilla were clean sheets.
On Sunday night at the Santiago Bernabeu, Los Blancos dominated their title rivals, Atletico Madrid. After a cagey start, Karim Benzema wonderfully converted a well-worked transition opportunity. And from there, it was textbook.
Here are the player ratings from Real Madrid’s 2-0 home victory over Atleti.
GK Thibaut Courtois
World-class. Thibaut Courtois was sublime in a Man of the Match performance about a week ago against Athletic Bilbao, and he was arguably even better in this clean sheet vs. Atletico Madrid. Whoever wants to argue that Jan Oblak is better than Courtois can argue with a wall – preferably the wall with ‘Courtois’ emblazoned on his back. Courtois commanded his box perfectly and made seven saves, including three of the top-drawer variety. Tricky free kicks headed for the upper 90, driven free kicks that missed everyone, reflex saves at the near post…you name it, the big Belgian has it covered.
Rating: 9.0
LB Ferland Mendy
This was another active, commanding display from Ferland Mendy at left back. The Frenchman had three tackles and one interception, completing over 90 percent of his passes. He made some great overlaps up the pitch and was inches away from assisting Vinicius Junior. Defensively, Angel Correa and the Atleti attack just could not match his strength.
Rating: 8.0
CB David Alaba
Likewise, David Alaba was too strong for Atleti’s attack. Whether it was Luis Suarez or Antoine Griezmann, the Atleti forwards were completely stymied by the Austrian. He made some great headed clearances in the box and was there to cut out runs before they could lead to anything. Alaba’s football IQ is outstanding on and off the ball. And he is a leader.
Rating: 8.0
CB Eder Militao
Eder Militao delivered another fine performance in central defense. He got to any one-on-one challenge or through ball that Atleti tried to test him with, to the point where they started to avoid challenging him entirely. Attackers hate going up against Militao, who made the world-class Griezmann look like Luuk de Jong on the ball.
Rating: 8.0
RB Dani Carvajal
Dani Carvajal left the pitch in the 81st minute but made his presence felt before then with his usual hard work on both ends of the pitch. He completed 100 percent of his 47 passes, and that sums up how he played and what he needed to do in this Derbi. Avoid making any mistakes.
Rating: 7.0