Real Madrid 1-1 Atletico Madrid: Player ratings as Madrid derby turns into Uruguayan affair

Alvaro Rodriguez cancelled out Jose Gimenez' opener to win a point for Real Madrid (Shutterstock)

LALIGA Real Madrid 1-1 Atletico Madrid: Player ratings as Madrid derby turns into Uruguayan affair

Ayoola Kelechi 23:59 - 25.02.2023

18-year-old Alvaro Rodriguez and Jose Maria Gimenez both scored as the Madrid derby ended in a draw.

Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid played out an intense Madrid derby at the Bernabeu as goals from two Uruguayan substitutes Jose Maria Gimenez for Atletico Madrid and Alvaro Rodriguez for Real Madrid ensured that the teams shared the spoils of a well-fought battle. 

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In addition to Gimenez and Rodriguez, there were a number of key performances all over the park from both teams and a few other performances that would rather be forgotten as soon as possible. Here are the ratings for Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid in full: 

Real Madrid

Thibaut Courtois 5.5/10

Courtois did not have much say in the goal, and barely had anything to do outside conceding it. He made only one save in the game, but it was a vital save from a well-struck effort from Yannick Carrasco so he gets some extra credit. 

Daniel Carvajal 4/10

Carvajal had a poor game by his standards. He was dribbled more times than he made successful tackles, and did not have the usual effect in the final third that you would expect from him against Atletico Madrid. It was one of those performances that he will not be playing back for the grandkids. 

Antonio Rudiger 6/10

Rudiger had a good game even if it was unspectacular. He was Real Madrid’s best defender on the day and managed six defensive actions, which is as many as any other person in the Los Blancos back line. Although they did not keep a clean sheet on this occasion, Rudiger still has a lot to smile about. 

Eder Militao 5/10

Not the best game from Militao but he was not poor either. He let his marker steal a march on him a few times but otherwise was okay at the back for Real Madrid. 

Nacho Fernández 5.5/10

Nacho had a decent game in the Madrid derby and scarcely put a foot wrong throughout his 77 minutes on the pitch. He did not do too much with the ball but was assured in possession, completing 34 of his 35 passes and only losing the ball on four occasions.

Dani Ceballos 6.5/10

Dani Ceballos was impressive again in the heart of Real Madrid’s midfield and his energy was exactly what Los Blancos needed in a physical encounter against their neighbours. Ceballos carried himself well as was vital to Real Madrid’s efforts to recover the ball throughout his time on the pitch. 

Toni Kroos 6.5/10

Toni Kroos playing slightly at the base of Real Madrid’s midfield had another solid performance where he controlled the game from deep and unsurprisingly had the most touches and passes in the entire game, completing 74 passes at a 95% completion rate. 

Federico Valverde 7.5/10

Arguably Real Madrid’s best player of the night, Valverde showed that he could produce the best of worlds as he spent the first hour shoring up Los Blancos’ midfield and spent the remaining half hour as a constant attacking threat down the right wing. He may not have scored or assisted, but he certainly gave a stellar account of himself. 

Marco Asensio 5/10

Marco Asensio did not do too much wrong, but he did not do too much right either. The Real Madrid frontline simply did not click today and while it was not Asensio’s fault that this happened, he certainly did not do anything to help the situation either. 

Vinicius Junior 5.5/10

Vinicius Junior was perhaps the Real Madrid starting forward who tried to make something happen the most, but unfortunately for the Brazilian, most of the things he tried did not come off. He attempted a staggering 15 take-ons, but was only successful with six, and that really sums up his performance against Atletico Madrid. 

Karim Benzema 5/10

It was a rare bad day at the office for the Real Madrid captain as he struggled to have his usual impact on the game. He should have given Real Madrid the lead with the best chance of the first half, but he could not make the chance count when it mattered most. 

Luka Modric 7/10

Luka Modric oozes class in every game he plays. Whether for all 90 minutes or for only 30 minutes like today, you are certain to get a show when Modric is in full flow. He came off the bench against Atletico Madrid to serve up an assist for Real Madrid’s equaliser and was one of the best players on the pitch. 

Aurelien Tchouameni 5/10

Tchouameni entered the fray at the same time as Modric but did not have the same impact that the Croatian did. He was not as influential in the game as his midfield partner, but he did not do too much wrong either. The Frenchman is just returning from an injury layoff, so maybe it is best not to expect too much from him so soon. 

Eduardo Camavinga 7/10

Camavinga has made a habit of being a super sub for Real Madrid, and this was another occasion where he changed the game for the better. His entrance brought an immediate infusion of energy to Los Blancos’ midfield and 

Alvaro Rodríguez 7/10

To score a late equaliser for Real Madrid in your first-ever Madrid derby takes a lot of cojones, and it seems 18-year-old Uruguayan sensation Alvaro Rodriguez has them in abundance. 

Alvaro Rodriguez scores a dramatic equaliser for Real Madrid

The striker received praise from Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti after his late heroics, and he could be on his way to becoming a Real Madrid first-team regular in the near future. 

Lucas Vazquez 5/10

Vazquez was brought in to replace the tiring Carvajal and also add some bite to Real Madrid’s attack, but he ended up only doing one of those things. He adequately replaced Carvajal, and even though he was better than his compatriot right-back, he did not have any real influence on the game. 

Atletico Madrid 

Jan Oblak 7/10

Jan Obak has struggled for form in the last season or so with Atletico Madrid, but he does have the occasional good day, and this was one of the better ones. 

Oblak was consistently called into action during the Madrid derby and answered that call with aplomb on all but one of these occasions. Oblak made six saves from seven shots on target and kept Altico Madrid in the game time and time again. 

Nahuel Molina 3/10

Coming up against Vinicius is a difficult task for any defender, even a World Cup winner like Molina. The Argentine defender suffered and was taught harsh lessons as he tried to keep track of Real Madrid’s Brazilian enigma. Molina was dribbled six times, managing to win only two tackles as Real Madrid concentrated their efforts down their left channel, much to Montiel’s dismay. 

Stefan Savic 5/10

Savic had a good game with Atletico Madrid in the derby but never really stood out in any way during the game. 

The centre-back hardly put a foot wrong and also maintained his composure for 90 minutes 

Mario Hermoso 5.5/10

Mario Hermoso did quite well, against Real Madrid, especially when you consider that he spent most of the match filling in for Reinildo Mandava, who had to be taken off early due to injury. 

Reinildo Mandava 5/10

Reinildo’s injury comes as a huge blow to Atletico Madrid, as they could now be without him for an extended period, however, he did not have much influence in the Madrid derby after playing only 23 minutes before getting subbed off. 

Marcos Llorente 5/10

A decent if not unspectacular outing for Marcos Llorente, who tried to provide cover for Molina at right back and made some key defensive interventions to put a damper on Vinicius’ day.  

Koke 5.5/10

Koke struggled to keep up with Real Madrid’s midfield but managed to stay abreast of them despite the obvious superiority in numbers and talent. Not a bad day at the office, although his on-the-ball quality was limited by Atletico’s approach in the end. 

Pablo Barrios 5.5/10

Not too different from Koke, 19-year-old Pablo Barrios had a decent game against Real Madrid’s vastly more experienced midfield and held his own for the entire first half before being replaced by Angel Correa at the break. 

Saul Niguez 5/10

Saul had a similar performance to Llorente on the other wing, disciplined and solid defensively without offering much in the way of an attacking threat. Saul managed more defensive actions than he had shots or key passes, but will still be happy that he was able to help the team out.

Antoine Griezmann 7/10

Antoine Griezmann was in brilliant shape for Atletico Madrid, continuing his recent purple patch in LaLiga. Although he was unable to get a goal this time, he still gave the Real Madrid defence hell and eventually assisted the Roojiblancos' opening goal of the game. 

Yannick Carrasco 6.5/10

Carrasco was also a menace up front for Atletico Madrid and was an excellent outlet for Athletico Madrid by leading their attacks with his runs through channels and the almost constant beating of Dani Carvajal on Real Madrid’s right side. 

Alvaro Morata 5/10

Not much impact from the late substitute and not much could have truly been expected anyway.

Thomas Lemar 5/10

Thomas Lemar came on earlier than Morata but had a similar effect to the Spaniard as he barely got on the ball enough times to make any real difference. 

Axel Witsel 5/10

Another substitute that neither added to nor removed anything from Atletico Madrid’s overall performance, Witsel replaced Koke with 13 minutes of normal time left and only touched the ball nine times. 

José Maria Giménez 7/10

Gimenez would have been the substitute of the match had his compatriot not stolen his limelight in the dying moments, but his performance was still worthy of note. 

Gimenez replaced the injured Reinildo and was solid in defence for Atletico Madrid before scoring what he thought would be the winner after 78 minutes of play. 

Ángel Correa 2/10

Just so Atletico Madrid’s substitutes could balance out performance-wise, Angel Correa decided to have a shocking 20-minute spell to cancel out Gimenez’ performance. 

Correa came on as a half-time substitute for Barrios but spent less than 20 minutes on the pitch before getting sent off for an elbow aimed at Rudiger.

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