Real Madrid Player Ratings for February as Courtois, defense carry a spiraling squad
Real Madrid had a rough month of February. Aside from a brilliant performance in the second half against Alaves, Los Blancos played out 1-0 losses, 1-0 wins, or 0-0 draws. It was a shockingly boring month from Real, who had been so exciting through the first few months of the season under returning manager Carlo Ancelotti.
Here are the player ratings from a disappointing but eventful February before Real Madrid get ready for a difficult March that begins with matches against Real Sociedad and PSG.
GK Thibaut Courtois
Amidst a sea of poor performances, Thibaut Courtois made his case for being Real’s best player of the 2021-22 season with a sensational February. Even when Real lost, Courtois was a star. His displays against Rayo Vallecano and PSG were two of his best performances of the season. Without Courtois, Los Blancos would have surely lost by at least three goals to the Parisians.
Rating: 8.0
LB Ferland Mendy
The month of February was not a happy one for Ferland Mendy, who played through an injury against PSG and has not been the same in the last three matches. Mendy needs to be healthy in order to be effective and improve his March grade.
Rating: 5.0
LB Marcelo
Marcelo started in two matches for Real Madrid. He had his best performance in years at left back against Granada, turning back the clock by making very few mistakes and offering a great attacking outlet in a match in which Real struggled offensively. But he was a disaster not but one week later against Villarreal. Samuel Chukwueze destroyed him, and he is very lucky Real did not concede in that match.
Rating: 5.0
LB/CB David Alaba
David Alaba had an excellent February, in line with what he has done throughout the season. The No. 4 is one of Real’s most consistent players. He started the first game of the month against Athletic Bilbao at left back due to an injury to Ferland Mendy and performed well despite the loss in the Copa del Rey. He was even better at center back, of course, which is his permanent position for Real Madrid now. Even against PSG, Alaba distinguished himself with some goal-saving blocks. Out injured against Rayo Vallecano, Alaba was sorely missed.
Rating: 8.0
CB Eder Militao
More high marks go to Alaba’s center back partner, Eder Militao. He was masterful against the likes of Villarreal and PSG, standing out as one of the reasons why Real Madrid were in both matches despite being significantly outplayed and outcoached. Militao is one of the best central defenders in Europe right now, and Madridistas have every reason to believe he will keep up these performances in March.
Rating: 8.0
CB Nacho Fernandez
Like Marcelo, Nacho Fernandez started in two matches last month for Los Merengues. And also like his fellow veteran defender, Nacho was poor in one one of them (Rayo) and excellent in the other start (Bilbao). Nacho is who he is at this point; he is a good backup who can excel when the team has control of a match.
Rating: 6.5
RB Dani Carvajal
Dani Carvajal’s average sinks because of a horrible performance against PSG, because, otherwise, he was quite good in February. He was brilliant in the 1-0 win over Granada, and he honestly did bounce back from the Champions League downer with two quality performances in LaLiga vs. Alaves and Rayo Vallecano. Carvajal was hung out to dry by Carlo Ancelotti against Kylian Mbappe, but it is true that you expect better from a right back of world-class status in a game like that. And that is the issue with Carvajal. He is still very good, but Madridistas just cannot feel 100 percent safe in the Champions League due to his injuries and inconsistency.
Rating: 6.5
RB Lucas Vazquez
Lucas Vazquez started one match for Real Madrid in February, playing a less active role than usual, which is a good thing because it means Carvajal was out less with injuries. The Galician was quite mediocre in that lone start, which was in the Copa del Rey defeat to Athletic Bilbao.
Rating: 6.0