Ranking the El Clasico debutants

Debutants Luis Suarez and James Rodriguez during Real Madrid vs BarcelonaIt has been described as the biggest game of club football on the planet. Many have also stated that the world stops for 90 minutes when Real Madrid play Barcelona. Indeed, El Clasico has no equals when it comes to club football rivalry. And to be a part of this historic fixture is always what plenty of professional footballers dream of since the day they start kicking the ball.However, only a few get to live that reality of bearing the Spanish capital club’s crest or the revolutionary Catalan colors. And on October 26, six of them included themselves into the pantheon of legendary names like Raul, Di Stefano, Zarra, Cryuff, Ronaldino, Zidane and more. James Rodriguez, Toni Kroos debuted for the Blancos while Barca had four debutants in the form of Luis Suarez, Ivan Rakitic, Jeremy Mathieu and Claudio Bravo.On arguably the biggest games of their careers, were they instrumental for their sides? We take a look

#6 Claudio Bravo

Rating – 3/10

Claudio Bravo entered the Santiago Bernabeu with a perfect record as the new shot stopper of Barcelona. The former Real Sociedad goalkeeper set a club record and went on for 8 games without conceding a goal. With a game of this magnitude in front of him, Cules were optimistic that the Chilean would be able to stop the dynamic attack of Real Madrid.

However, the record concluded in the first half itself after Cristiano Ronaldo converted from the penalty spot to put Real on level terms, thus ending Bravo’s record in the 754^th minute. In the second half Bravo ended up conceding three times as Barca were beaten convincingly by their nemesis. It was a debut to forget for the 31-year-old.

#5 Toni Kroos

Rating – 7/10

By far, the bargain buy of this summer transfer window was Toni Kroos after Real president Florentino Perez purchased the German from Bayern Munich for £24 million. And he immediately made his mark in his debut game against Sevilla winning the UEFA Supercup and his first trophy for Real.

After Xabi Alonso made the switch to the other end, the responsibility of Kroos increased as he was entrusted with defensive duties by manager Carlo Ancelotti in addition to his attacking talents. And El Clasico was the night to convince the fans if he was up for the task.

The World Cup winner showed why he is one of the best midfielders as he put on a dominant show with the ball at his feet. He pulled the strings from his deep position and often moved up the pitch looking for opportunities to shoot. Together with Modric, the duo completely outclassed Barca’s midfield and were equally effective with their defensive duties.

#4 Ivan Rakitic

Rating – 4/10

The €18 million recruit from Sevilla came on for Xavi who was substituted in the second half and his intro was a disastrous one. His poorly executed corner kick allowed Real to commence a counter attack through Isco who won the ball ahead of Iniesta and released the attackers to score Madrid’s third.

From then on, it was aimless passing from the Croatian who couldn’t penetrate Real’s stubborn defence. He did try to make things happen with a long range but Casillas was untroubled as the effort went wide. Perhaps, it would have been a better night for him if he had started the game. But Rakitic ended up as an insignificant figure in his Clasico debut.

#3 Jeremy Mathieu

Rating – 6/10

The former Valencia defender was fielded as a left back by Luis Enrique in place of Jordi Alba. The first half went well for the Frenchman as he drifted forward on few occasions and was able to contain James Rodriguez on the left flanks. Mathieu looked comfortable in possession and especially with the absence of Gareth Bale, he wasn’t afraid to advance and help his team-mates up front.

However, the scenario changed in the second half as James began to assert himself in the game and enjoyed more freedom in attack. Mathieu’s efforts ended in vain as Barca were breached thrice by the hosts. The 30-year-old couldn’t replicate his first half performances and Barca went down 3-1 to the hosts, capping off a difficult debut for Mathieu.

#2 James Rodriguez

Rating – 8/10

No player was under such immense pressure to perform in El Clasico as James Rodriguez specifically because to two reasons. One was to prove his €80 million price tag, second was to fill in the boots of Angel Di Maria. All eyes were fixed on the Colombian and manager Ancelotti knew that he was in for a series of attacks from the media if he was let down by his new recruit.

But the World Cup Golden Boot winner didn’t let his manager down as he shone bright among the bunch of stars present on the field. He linked up well with his fellow attackers and set up Benzema for the third goal after a wonderful on-two play. The 23-year-old displayed maturity in possession and made good decisions on the counter. He also tracked back and helped out Carvajal in defence when required.

With Gareth Bale missing, James did an excellent job on the right flank and proved his value to the team.

#1 Luis Suarez

Rating – 6/10

The inclusion of Luis Suarez in the starting line up was the biggest surprise and the pre-match talk of El Clasico. The Uruguayan made his return to the pitch after serving a ban period of four months and not many predicted that Suarez would be thrown right away into a game of such high expectations by coach Luis Enrique.

However, with a player of his reputation and ability, expectations were bound to be high on Suarez and the former Liverpool striker made his mark early in the game, by providing an assist to Neymar for his first goal. He also set up Lionel Messi for an almost second which wasn’t put away by the Argentine.

But even after a good start, the game slowly slipped away from their hands and Suarez’s effect on the game reduced. By the second half, his role was cut short by Sergio Ramos and Pepe who were able to render him ineffective. Finally, his pale debut came to an end as he was taken off to be replaced by Pedro.