Real Madrid 2-0 Atletico Madrid: 5 hits and flops as Atletico's unbeaten run ends | La Liga 2020/21

Real Madrid won the bragging rights in the Spanish capital after seeing off Atletico Madrid 2-0 at home in La Liga, rounding off a crucial week on a high.

Casemiro broke the deadlock after the break. An own goal from Jan Oblak following that essentially killed the tie as a contest.

The Rojiblancos, who came into the match as the only unbeaten side in the league, rarely ever tested the hosts, mustering just a single shot on target.

They remain at the top of the table despite the loss with also a game in hand, but the reigning champions laid out a blueprint for beating Simeone's side.

Here are the hit and flop performers from the match.

Real Madrid 2-0 Atletico Madrid: 5 hits and flops

Hit: Daniel Carvajal (Real Madrid)

Carvajal made an emphatic return to Madrid's XI

The right-back returned to the starting XI after a long time and put in a great shift to show Real Madrid what they've been missing all this time.

Carvajal was a persistent threat all night for Real Madrid, driving forward to link up with Vazquez, who'd been filling in for him throughout his absence, and sent really good deliveries inside the box.

Dani Carvajal joined Real Madrid at age 10. He put them on the verge of a massive derby win 😘 pic.twitter.com/78tNoUy16n

— B/R Football (@brfootball) December 12, 2020

He even scored a wonderful goal in the second half, which was, however, deemed as an 'own goal' from Jan Oblak, but either way, helped put the contest to bed.

Since the Rojiblancos barely threatened, he didn't have much to do defensively but still made five tackles and one interception. Not a bad way to return to the fold.

Flop: Luis Suarez (Atletico Madrid)

Suarez's first Madrid derby was one to forget

Suarez made a whirlwind start to his Atletico career when he netted twice and bagged an assist after coming off the bench on his debut, but since then, he has blown hot and cold.

And last night he put in arguably his weakest performance so far, struggling to even get into the match, let alone influence it.

Luis Suarez's first Madrid Derby for Atletico:23 touches10 passes completed1/3 duels won1 shotA struggle. pic.twitter.com/HRQO5DDRwg

— Squawka Football (@Squawka) December 12, 2020

He looked well off the pace when the ball was kicked forward in the opening half before going completely AWOL in the second half.

Simeone's change of system too did little to extract the best out of the Uruguayan and he was taken off in the 73rd minute, capping off a dreadful evening.

Hit: Casemiro (Real Madrid)

Casemiro worked superbly alongside Kroos and Modric

The match was won in the center of the park as Casemiro, Toni Kroos, and Luka Modric thoroughly dominated the midfield and controlled the match for the hosts.

The most impressive of them all was Casemiro, who was integral to keeping hold of possession and even scored the opening goal which set the tone for Los Blancos.

He finished the game with 94% pass success, won one aerial duel, and made four clearances in total, showing how colossal he was in the victory.

On the downside, Casemiro also picked up a yellow, his fifth of the season, which means he's suspended for the clash against Athletic Bilbao on Tuesday.

Flop: Yannick Carrasco (Atletico Madrid)

Carrasco was below par and offered little in the way of attack

Carrasco lasted only 45 minutes in the match and the reason he played only the opening half is because he was simply awful.

The Belgian was kept firmly in check by Vazquez and Caravajal and barely made any contact with the ball.

His trademark runs from the right flank were missing last night and far from testing the home side, Carrasco failed to take a single shot.

Simeone's tactical switch at half time saw the Belgian hooked off as Atletico reverted to a 4-3-3 formation.

Hit: Zinedine Zidane (Real Madrid)

Zidane got the better of Simeone once again

He's been called into question several times in the past, but Zidane had made it a point to deliver in the key moments.

This season too, his position has come under threat quite a few times already, but the Real Madrid manager has steered his ship back on course each time.

Last night, he tactically outwitted Simeone in every department, even forcing the Atleti honcho to change his formation in the second half, although to no avail.

The victory also rounds up a crucial week for him and his side, beating Sevilla, Borussia Monchengladbach, and now Atletico, keeping their season from going off the rails, whilst also having got the better of Barcelona and Inter Milan (twice) previously.