Player Ratings: Real Madrid vs Manchester United

The first installment of possibly the match-up of the year is done, but not quite dusted with. In a star-studded clash between two clubs with the most colourful European histories, there were a few stars who blossomed into supernovas and few who didn’t. Here are the player ratings for the 1-1 draw at the Santiago Bernabeu..

Real Madrid

Diego Lopez:

He could really do little about Welbeck’s close-range header, but barring that, it was a calm and composed performance from the former Sevilla man, who was quick to sprint off his line to deny Welbeck his second after a sublime pass from Robin van Persie. A solid goalkeeping display, but Lopez was upstaged by his opposite number. Score: 6.5/10

Alvaro Arbeloa:

Seemed to have a lot to do, with the quick interchange of possession between Welbeck, Kagawa and van Persie, but not many threats came down his flank. Anonymous in attack, but generally up to the job when called upon defensively. Score: 6/10

Sergio Ramos:

Should have done better and made it more difficult for Welbeck to head in the opener, but the English striker’s explosive ability caught him off guard. Generally did well to deviate the United attackers from the goal and pushed them out into wider or less-threatening positions, even if the United attack was not at their best. Commanded the defence well and joined the attack occasionally. Score: 7/10

Raphael Varane:

Fast establishing himself as one of the most talented and defensively adept youngsters on the European scene. Another class performance from the Frenchman, playing with the composure and confidence you’d see from an established European player. Varane looks to have stolen Pepe’s position for good now. The only blemish on his performance would be the loose last-man tackle on Evra which on another day could have possibly warranted a punishment. Score: 7/10

Fabio Coentrao:

Arguably Madrid’s best defender on the night. Could have and should have scored twice, save de Gea’s adroit athleticism. A force to be reckoned with down the left, as he foraged down the flank on many a run, providing ample support to his teammates up front while also effectively ruling out the ‘freckled’ and ‘demonic’ Wayne Rooney, forcing the ex-Evertonian to track back much further than moving up the pitch. Score: 7.5/10

Sami Khedira:

A useful physical presence in the middle of the park, diligently keeping and distributing possession. Nothing extraordinary on the night for the German though, who tested de Gea once with a half volley from 20-yards out. Often played back-up to the much more active of the two holding players, Alonso. Score: 6/10

Xabi Alonso:

The busier and more active of the middle two. Could not get too many passes to split the United defence as the Manchester club sat back to defend, but adapted his game to the situation very quickly, linking up well with Ozil after the tactical change by Mourinho. Pulled the strings on the four in front of him, with quite a few overhead balls that seemed to travel the diagonal of the park and neat passing. Saved Madrid’s blushes and possibly, their European campaign by clearing van Persie’s effort off the line in the dying moments of the game. Score: 7.5/10

Angel di Maria:

Madrid’s star angel of the night skies. Ran rings around Rafael and seemed the Blanco most involved in the game. Sprinted down his flank with the ball glued to his feet, and even cut into the centre a few times effectively. Provided a great cross from which Cristiano Ronaldo equalled proceedings with that thumping header. Replaced by Modric with 15 minutes remaining. Score: 8/10

Mesut Ozil:

Architect prime of Madrid this season thus far. Seemed below his best on the night, wavering in and out of the game, but was the fulcrum of Real’s attacks, creating quite a few chances though his teammates failed to capitalise. Marked well by the United midfield as a whole. Score: 7/10

Cristiano Ronaldo:

This fixture had only one man’s name written all over it before the night itself. Cristiano Ronaldo, CR7, ‘The Prodigal Son’. The performance was below-par by Cristiano’s own unbelievably high standards. Was man-marked wonderfully well by the combined effort of Patrice Evra and Shinji Kagawa in the opening exchanges, but the Portuguese got one over them when, akin to a predator swooping down on its prey, he leapt up on his jet pack-powered feet and sent a thumping header past a hapless de Gea to equalise for Madrid. Provided the aerial threat in Mourinho’s equation to get the better of United but faded slightly as the game wore on. Score: 7/10

Karim Benzema:

Two acronyms for his performance. MIA and AWOL. Seemed to shy away from the ball, lost possession when he did have the ball and simply could not appear on pitch, let alone impose himself. An erroneous game for the Frenchman, and was replaced by Gonzalo Higuain late on, who himself did not better Benzema’s performance. Score: 5/10

Substitutes:

Gonzalo Higuain: Came on for Benzema and was not an improvement on the French striker. Looked subdued, off colour and simply not involved. Score: 5/10

Luka Modric: Replaced Angel di Maria to provide a defensive dimension on the wings to prevent a late United comeback, and almost found Cristiano with a low cross in the last few minutes. Score: 5.5/10

Pepe: Varane has officially snatched Pepe’s centre-back position, but the Portuguese was introduced late in the game in place of Alonso to just shore up the defence. N/A

Manchester United

David de Gea:

Star Superstar SUPERNOVA of the match. A few days back and the media all over England were giving the young Spaniard so much stick, he could build a fully-functioning stick-mansion. Almost everything was against him last night, the media, the home crowd, expectations, and Cristiano Ronaldo’s rocket right-boot. de Gea rose to the occasion in mercurial fashion. Denying Coentrao once with his fingertips and again with his feet, de Gea produced a series of world-class saves, dotted throughout the course of the game. Without the Spaniard, it might well have finished a more emphatic scoreline in favour of the home team. Simply magnificent. Score: 9.5/10

Rafael da Silva:

Struggled early on in the match. He rushed in tackles, and was often caught dawdling out of position in the opening stages and eventually booked, as di Maria ran rings around Rafa. Settled himself as the game wore on but never quite looked himself. Score: 6/10

Rio Ferdinand:

Tasked with handling Benzema, Ferdinand had little to do as such. The French striker seemed off colour, but Rio did well enough to ensure still that no ball would reach Benzema. Lunged out to curb Cristiano’s shot as he latched onto a low cross into the six-yard box. Errors here and there and lacking on pace, but overall, a decent performance from the big defender. Score: 7/10

Jonny Evans:

Busy throughout the match, as he had to help Evra due to the abundance of Madrid attacks flowing in from that flank. Was caught out of position once and almost resulted in Ronaldo claiming his second headed goal of the day, but recovered just in time to put off the Portuguese. A solid performance peppered by the occasional slip-up and a lot of concentration. Score: 7.5/10

Patrice Evra:

Was cooped down at his own end by the plethora of Madrid attacks coming down his flank, and could provide minimal assistance up front. Required Kagawa and Evans to assist him in fending off di Maria and Ozil. Does not deserve the blame for Ronaldo’s goal, as a small man himself, he should not have been left to fight his man alone at the back post, especially when the man he’s marking is Cristiano Ronaldo. An ordinary performance from the Frenchman. Score: 6.5/10

Danny Welbeck:

Initially started on the wing, but eventually drifted into any available space behind van Persie, linking up well with the Dutchman. Did well to fend off Sergio Ramos to flick on his goal past Lopez and give United the much coveted away goal, but was met by an advancing Diego Lopez when he tried to meet a smooth van Persie through-ball. Impressive from the United academy product, contesting well with Coentrao and putting his explosive speed to good use. Looked the most keen of the United attacking force. Score: 8/10

Michael Carrick:

Yet another great performance from Mr. Underrated. Was the backbone of the United team last night and screened the defence well with Jones, stealing the ball off of the opponent and distributing neatly. An 87% passing rate completed his night, though a few of his attempted balls forward did not come off as he’d expected. Score: 7/10

Phil Jones:

Shielded the back four very well, and was played to snuff out as much as possible of Ronaldo’s impact. Lost concentration here and there in the first half but shadowed the ‘prodigal son’ to near-perfection in the second after a small tactical change by Fergie. Proved his mettle as a starter for United. Confident display overall. Score: 8/10

Shinji Kagawa:

The Japanese showed promising signs, with some sublime touches and neat, direct passing, in addition to his link ups. But he found life hard with the physicality of Madrid’s midfield and defence. Cameo-d in and out of the game but must improve much to attain the level he once had at Dortmund. Score: 5.5/10

Wayne Rooney:

Forced to track back by the runs of Coentrao, and as defensive duties where thrust upon him, he diminished in influence. Tried to play a few long balls to van Persie, who seemed isolated up top, but could not exhibit his attacking prowess as much as he’d wanted to. Uncharacteristic performance from Rooney. Score: 5/10

Robin van Persie:

Seemed quite alone up top, as Madrid burdened his team with defensive concerns. Held the ball well when he got it, and showed some incisive passing, almost setting up Welbeck. Really should have scored at the death to give United that comfortable advantage going back home. Poor connection from 10 yards out, providing ample time for Xabi Alonso to clear the effort off the line. An average performance with a few promises here and there. Score: 6.5/10

Substitutes:

Ryan Giggs: Came on to a wonderful reception by both sets of fans alike to replace Kagawa, and sat a bit deeper than the Japanese did. Had a chance late on in the Madrid penalty box but took too long to make a decision. Score: 6/10

Antonio Valencia: Added a new dimension to United’s attack down the right, replacing Welbeck. Could not make a big impact on the proceedings. Score: 6/10

Anderson: Replaced Rooney a few minutes before full-time and had little time to impact the game. N/A

Part 1 of this mouth-watering match-up has produced heroes and zeroes in its own right. With a 1-1 scoreline and an away goal, will it be advantage United at the Theatre of Dreams? Or will Mourinho’s Madrid marksmen make it past the challenge posed by the Devils?

Wait and watch, ladies and gentlemen.