Real Madrid, the Champions of Europe, are challenging Barcelona for the La Liga crown but they received their first setback last week after being held to a 1-1 draw by Athletic Bilbao at San Mames. They came back sharply this midweek clinching a commendable 3-0 win over AS Roma as a reminder of their European supremacy and replicated a similar show tonight at Santiago Bernabeu against Espanyol in an exciting league tie. The 1-0 scoreline might not reflect it, but the Los Blancos were a completely dominant force and would have put the game to bed much earlier had they finished those chances created throughout the contest.
Below are the Real Madrid players rated in their narrow win against Espanyol.
Thibaut Courtois: 7
The former Chelsea custodian returned between the sticks after being replaced by Keylor Navas for the Champions League tie. He was not troubled much by the visitors (except a chipped effort of Borja Iglesias that struck the crossbar) and made a few routine stops to ensure a clean sheet.
Alvaro Odriozola: 7.5
The summer recruit from Real Sociedad made his debut in place of Dani Carvajal who did not train following a knock. The youngster, however, settled in pretty quickly and maintained accuracy while distributing the ball from the right flank. His crosses could have been sharper early in the game, but it was overall a comfortable night for the Spaniard.
Raphael Varane: 7.5
Varane had few moments of discomfort as he lost a few duels and could have positioned himself better on a few occasions but overall did not find it hard to defend a 1-0 lead.
Sergio Ramos: 8.5
Was excellent barring one howler which could have cost his side severely if Iglesias hadn’t hit the woodwork. Ramos maintained a towering presence otherwise, was spot on with his tackles, blocks and interceptions and also came close to score on a couple of occasions.
Nacho: 8
The versatile Spaniard started as a left-back in place of Marcelo and enjoyed his time while making overlap runs to combine with Marco Asensio. His crosses were troublesome for the visitors. Nacho also performed his defensive duties when required.
Casemiro: 7.5
Was dispossessed once but improved despite a slow start and kept on breaking down Espanyol’s moves in the middle of the park. Screened the backline with his usual attributes and also offered presence high up the pitch with box-to-box movements.
Luka Modric: 8
Another steady outing for the Croatian magician who played his part in the solitary goal of the game. Lost the possession badly a couple of times but kept on stretching the opponents wide by switching the game on the flanks thanks to his excellent range of passing and vision. He also had a few efforts on goal which did not end up in the back of the net.
Dani Ceballos: 7
Had a lively first half where he built up moves from midfield and showed great composure as he kept the ball rolling to make the away side struggle more to win back possession. Was replaced by Lucas Vazquez at just over the hour mark.
Isco: 7.5
Saw his efforts going off target narrowly on a couple of occasions but kept on troubling the Espanyol backline with his great footwork, tricky runs and cut insides from the right. Was replaced by Marcos Llorente late in the game.
Marco Asensio: 8
Whipped in crosses from the left, create a number of chances and found the back of the net minutes before half-time which eventually proved to be the difference between these two sides at Bernabeu.
Karim Benzema: 6.5
Was not at his best as he could not add more to his tally this time despite a few decent build-ups. Was replaced by Mariano Diaz after an hour of football.
Substitutes
Mariano Diaz: 6
Didn’t have enough touches and saw one of his efforts blocked by the opponents.
Lucas Vazquez: 5.5
Had a shot on target but got dispossessed a couple of times one of which allowed Espanyol to form a quick counter-attack towards the end of the game.
Marcos Llorente: NA
Played too little to warrant a rating.
