Real Madrid’s semi-final clash against Chelsea in the UEFA Champions League has ended in a 1-1 stalemate after the first leg at the Alfredo de Stefano Stadium in Madrid. Christian Pulisic opened the scoring for the Blues in the 14th minute of the match.
Karim Benzema’s exceptional ball control inside the Chelsea penalty box led to Madrid’s equaliser around the half an hour mark. Chelsea had the better of the chances in the first half and could have put the game to bed with at least two more goals.
Zidane’s 3 at the back formation did not seem to pay the dividends as Dani Carvajal seemed rather uncomfortable in this new role in the side. The fixture is far from settled, and the two teams have everything to play for in the second leg at Chelsea’ Stamford Bridge Stadium. Here’s how the Real Madrid players were rated in their 1-1 draw against Chelsea.
Real Madrid Player Ratings Against Chelsea
GK: Thibaut Courtois – 7/10
Courtois remained largely untested on the night and could have barely done any better for Chelsea’s opener for the night.
RB: Dani Carvajal – 7/10
A satisfactory evening from Carvajal down the right-hand side. Odriozola came on to replace Carvajal in the second half of the match.
CB: Eder Militao – 7/10
Militao was calm and composed in defense and dealt with the Chelsea attackers all night long with relative ease. The defender was crucial in the build-up to the first goal as Militao’s header helped the ball onto Karim Benzema’s path.
CB: Raphael Varane – 7/10
Varane acted like the leader of the back-line in the absence of Sergio Ramos. Varane could have done slightly better with Chelsea’s opening goal of the night. Apart from that not much to complain about the Frenchman.
CB: Nacho Fernandez – 7/10
Nacho went about his job without much noise and was effective against Chelsea’s attackers. The defender also made a few dangerous runs down the left-hand side.
LB: Marcelo – 7/10
Marcelo was threatening in the more advanced areas of the pitch and delivered a sumptuous cross into the box that led to Madrid’s 29th-minute equaliser.
CM: Luka Modric – 7/10
Not very effective on the night as Chelsea often closed him down immediately. Modric had a decent evening at the Alfredo de Stefano nevertheless.
CM: Casemiro – 7/10
Acted like a constant guard to the Madrid back-line and kept Chelsea’s attackers at bay for large chunks of the match. Casemiro gave his all on the field of play and went into challenges with some serious aggression.
CM: Toni Kroos – 7/10
Not the ideal night for Kroos, who misplaced a few passes here and there. Despite that, Kroos made the most number of passes in the match. In a desperate attempt to stop Kante, Kroos pulled down the Frenchman and deservedly earned a caution from the referee.
ST: Karim Benzema – 8/10
Benzema was right on top of his game and drew Los Blancos level in the 29th minute of the match. The Frenchman came close to scoring a couple of minutes earlier before brilliantly controlling the ball and volleying it past Mendy in goal.
ST: Vinicius Jr – 7/10
Vinicius was vibrant down the left-hand side, but his final product seemed to let him down on a couple of occasions. Vinicius had a couple of dangerous runs against the Chelsea back-line in the first half of the match.
Real Madrid Player Ratings Against Chelsea
Substitutes
LW: Eden Hazard – 7/10
A lively half an hour or so against his former club after coming onto to replace Vinicius Jr.
CM: Marco Asensio – 6/10
Tried to get things ticking on the left-hand side but did not have a meaningful contribution.
RB: Alvaro Odriozola – 6/10
Not much involvement with play post his introduction.
ST: Rodrygo – NA
