Real Madrid 4-0 Alaves: Player Ratings

Real Madrid hosted Alaves at the Santiago Bernabeu as they looked to close down the gap between themselves and the league leaders. The match went smoothly for them as they registered a comfortable 4-0 victory.

The first half saw Real Madrid dominate proceedings with Alaves countering on a few occasions. Los Blancos took the lead in the closing moments of the first half courtesy a Cristiano Ronaldo goal.

Real then had a perfect start to the second half. Gareth Bale scored just two minutes after the restart which was followed by a goal from Cristiano Ronaldo. Ronaldo then allowed Karim Benzema to take a penalty in the closing stages of the game despite being on a hat-trick himself.

Here, let’s take a look at how the players fared for both the teams:

Alaves

Fernando Pacheco: 6/10

Pacheco was a solid presence at the back. He was called into action quite often and did well on a number of occasions. He made excellent stops throughout the match to keep the final scoreline from crossing double digits.

Alexis Ruano: 4/10

One of many Alaves players who could not perform to their full potential. He struggled in defence as Bale looked quite threatening on his side of the pitch. He did not contribute much in attack too, apart from a few decent runs.

Victor Laguardia: 5/10

Real Madrid v Deportivo Alaves - La Liga: Laguardia gave away the penalty

A completely underwhelming performance as he was nowhere to be found during Real's goals and then gave away a penalty for a late challenge on Bale. He would like to forget the night quite quickly.

Rodrigo Ely: 5.5/10

Like his centre-back partner, Ely too had a miserable performance at the heart of Alaves' defence. He was left for dead by Ronaldo and company throughout the match and never really could put up a fight against Madrid attackers, especially in the second half. He did make a few important interceptions and tackles to keep the scoreline respectable.

Ruben Duarte: 6/10

Duarte defended his team's left flank quite diligently. He was tentative and always ready to go into a tackle. However, he was quite often overwhelmed by the overlapping Vazquez and Carvajal combo later in the game.

Hernan Perez: 7/10

He was the liveliest of Alaves' attackers and used his pace well to trouble Real Madrid's defenders on the odd counter attacks. However, for all his pace, the lack of quality was quite apparent.

Manu Garcia: 6.5/10

This was not a flashy performance for the Spanish midfielder, however, it was an effective one. He dispossessed Real’s midfielders quite a few times and used the ball efficiently.

Daniel Torres: 6/10

Torres put in a decent display in the midfield as he screened his defence to some extent and also distributed the ball intelligently. However, he struggled against Kovacic and lost him several times.

Alfonso Pedraza: 4.5/10

This was again a game to forget for Pedraza, who has been one of Alaves' better player this season, barring this fixture. He struggled to cause too many problems and his final passes were poor. He failed to provide any end product as Alaves struggled to score.

John Guidetti: 5.5/10

He was unable to unleash any troubling shots on goal to continue his goal-scoring form. He tried to link midfield and attack a couple of times but nothing that inventive came off.

Ruben Sobrino: 6/10

The forward made one or two excellent runs across the box but without any end product. He certainly was one of the better attackers for Alaves and certainly could have used some help from his teammates.

Substitutes:

Ibai Gomez: 6/10

He was brought on for Pedraza in the second half. His pace on and off the ball did make things interesting on a few occasions, but, overall, he could not influence the game much.

Alvaro Medran: 6/10

brought on for Garcia, he slotted into the middle of the park. His introduction did mean that Real looked a bit less threatening while attacking.

Burgui: 5.5/10

He was brought on for Guidetti in the 74th minute, and did not have enough time to change the outcome of the game.

Real Madrid

Keylor Navas - 8.5/10

The Costa Rican was the standout performer in goal last night. He pulled off a brilliant one-on-one save against Hernan Perez in the first half apart from a number of routine saves.

Dani Carvajal: 7/10

The full-back had a pretty solid game for his team and forayed into the attacking realms and provided width for his teammates. His end-products may need some improvement.

Nacho: 6.5/10

This was an average game for the Spaniard. He made important tackles and interceptions but also showed signs of rustiness, especially against Alaves' runners.

Raphael Varane: 8/10

Varane had a great game as he dominated and won everything that came his way in the air. He won headers, made blocks, and clearances while being a calm head in the heart of the Real Madrid's defence.

Theo Hernandez: 6.5/10

He did fairly well against Perez and defended well in general, except a few odd counter-attacks here and there. Offensively, he provided some amazing crosses, which on any other day, might have been turned into goals.

Mateo Kovacic: 7/10

The Croatian International was influential throughout the game. He broke plays and started attacks from his own half. This was a good commanding display from him in the middle of the park. His creativity will be important if Los Blancos want to turn around their current form.

Casemiro: 6/10

The Brazillian has seen his form dip considerably this season. Today was no different. While he was solid on the defensive side of his game, he was way too casual on the ball and was often caught in possession.

Lucas Vazquez: 6/10

Vazquez looked sharp in possession and enjoyed having the ball at his feet. However, he just could not deliver the final ball quite as well as his teammates woudl've expected. The X-factor was clearly missing from his game.

Gareth Bale: 7/10

The Welshman started on the left wing as Zidane opted for a 4-4-2 formation. He was direct, took on his man and quite often, got the better of him. He scored Real's second goal and also won a penalty.

Karim Benzema: 8/10

The Frenchman was finally a shining star in a potent Real Madrid attack. He often dropped deep to help his midfield and combined well with his teams mates. However, for a striker, he was found on the left wing more often than required.

But then, he also has two assists and a goal to show for it. Concluding, we can say it was a typical Benzema performance, the one that will aggravate his critics and satiate his proponents

Cristiano Ronaldo: 8.5/10

The Portugues was a willing runner and often made runs beyond the last man. His runs and physicality were causing Alaves' defenders a lot of problems and took his two goals with aplomb and a level of precession we have been accustomed to. Astonishingly, he sacrificed a hat-trick by allowing Karim Benzema to take the penalty awarded to Madrid in the dying minutes of the game

Substitutes:

Dani Ceballos: 7/10

His introduction meant that Madrid were more comfortable on the ball as they looked to close out the match. He helped his side keep possession in tight spaces.

Marcos Llorente: N/A

Brought on in the 80th minute for Casemiro, he did not have enough time to affect the game.

Edited by Aakanksh Sanketh