Player Ratings: Real Madrid 0 - Real Sociedad 2; 2018 La Liga

Real Madrid returned to the Bernabeu for the first time in 2019 to take on Real Sociedad. Injuries have piled up — Gareth Bale, Marco Asensio, and Marcos Llorente were all ruled out. Despite the absences, Solari could not find room for Isco. It would be the young Brazilian Vinicius Jr whom would get the nod. Only the third player born in the year 2000 to start a La Liga match this season. The 18 year old repaid the faith Solari placed in him with a man of the match performance— he was well and truly the sole bright spot in what was another horror show for Real Madrid losing 2-0 at home to Real Sociedad.

Thibaut Courtois—7: Made some huge saves while the team were down to ten men. Was left out to dry on multiple occasions. No real fault on the goals.

Dani Carvajal—6: Aggressive and eager to turn around the result all evening, but failed to produce anything in attack and too often played the simple 5 yard pass to Lucas Vázquez or Luka Modric.

Raphael Varane—5: In the final 30 minutes of the match, the defensive organization was chaos.

Sergio Ramos—5.5: Made a few attacking forays where he nearly scored an equalizer. Had some crucial interceptions in the first half, but again utter chaos ensued in the second half and Madrid’s whole team were in scrambles and could have lost 3-0 by the end of it.

Marcelo—3: Another very poor performance from Marcelo. Leash has been too long. Sergio Reguilón has performed this season while Marcelo has been a shadow of his former self.

Casemiro—2: Gave away a clear penalty 90 seconds into the match. Performance did not improve after that moment. Marcos Llorente should waltz back into this team.

Toni Kroos—5: The German is not at fault for the team’s problems, put in an average performance— little to note.

Luka Modric—4.5: Surprisingly given the whole 90 minutes, especially after Madrid went down to ten men. Had a few blistering shots and circulated possession, but little else to note. Was clearly tiring in the second half.

Lucas Vázquez—3: Sent off for an avoidable challenge, severely impacting the chance of any come back. Produced very little on the night to warrant his spot.

Karim Benzema—6.5: Another one of the brighter spots for Madrid. Formed a nice partnership with Vinicius. Quietly goes about his defensive work, winning the ball off Illara multiple times.

Vinicius JR—9: Dynamic and brave, the Brazilian looks to make something happen every time he’s gets the ball. It doesn’t always come off, but he was one of the few players to break lines and get in behind Sociedad to create very good opportunities. Should have earned a penalty and was unlucky not to score from one of his six shots.

Substitutions:

Isco—5.5: Had two brilliant through balls to release Vinicius, one of which resulted in a clear penalty that was not called. Other than that, was a little bit careless on the ball and surprisingly lethargic.

Sergio Reguilón— N/A: Played the last 10 minutes and did not see much action.

Dani Ceballos—N/A: Played the last 5-7 minutes and again did not see much action.