Player Ratings: Real Madrid 0 - Barcelona 1; 2019 La Liga

An underwhelming Madrid once again falls to a better Barcelona team in the Santiago Bernabeu. Barcelona’s record in Madrid’s home stadium is staggering— of the last 18 Clasico’s in Madrid, Barcelona have only lost four. Madrid were subpar compared to their mid-week showing and desperately lacked a killer instinct in front of goal. Pride is damaged, but all focus must now turn to the Champions League as they look to see out the tie vs Ajax. Full match ratings below:

Thibaut Courtois—6.5: Four shots on target, three of which he dealt with well. His frame is so large that it does a nice job of covering most angles.

Dani Carvajal—6: Overall was not a poor performance Dani. He worked tirelessly to close down Dembele and then fly down the right flank to provide an outlet on the offensive front. Registered two key passes.

Raphael Varane—6: Does a nice job of creating quick combo opportunities to get out of pressure in the back. Dealt with Suarez pretty well and hustled back to potentially clear a Messi chip off the line.

Sergio Ramos—5.5: Battled with Messi and Suarez all evening. Slightly caught out on the goal as he stepped out to press Rakitic, but then failed to follow the Croatians run and remain goal side.

Sergio Reguilón—7: Over 180 Clasico minutes, Reguilón was arguably Madrid’s best performance. Had a team high of 4 tackles and put in some nice deliveries from the flank. As always, does a great job tucking in centrally to threat counter attacks and win possession high up the pitch.

Casemiro—5.5: Misplaced a number of passes and slowed Madrid down while in possession. Personally felt Valverde should have come in for the Brazilian.

Luka Modric—5.5: Had the most touches for Madrid (70), but failed to really leave his mark on the match. Tried to connect with Bale, but uncharacteristically misplaced many passes.

Toni Kroos—5.5: Was he deserving of a 55th substitution? Possibly, but many others could have been hauled off as well. Had some moments in the first half where he looked vertical and sliced the Barcelona defense with his vision, but was not the constant and cool presence that he normally represents.

Gareth Bale—2.5: Terrible performance. The Welshman had the perfect opportunity to flip the script and change the narrative surrounding his season and he flopped. Only 20 touches during his 60 minutes and a single shot, which was a free kick in the early minutes blasted over the net. Failed to connect with his teammates and failed to create any real danger.

Karim Benzema—3.5: Very limited involvement tonight. Was wrapped up by Lenglet and Pique. Had 1 shot and 1 key pass— very little else.

Vinicius JR—6: It wasn’t his best performance, but again he at least produces some danger. 6 shots in total, all of which were fairly poor, 3 key passes, and 2 completed dribbles.

Substitutions:

Fede Valverde—6: Got stuck in on a couple of tackles early and wasn’t afraid to get on the ball and keep possession circulating. Produced 1 key pass and did not look out of place.

Marco Asensio—6: Marco had a few fleeting moments of magic. A deft heel touch which freed Carvajal in the box to put in a low driven cross from which Madrid nearly scored. He roamed from right to central to the left, connecting with Vincius and eventually Isco. Would have hoped for more touches and I comment but most of Madrid’s play flowed through the left with Vinicius and Reguilón.

Isco—7: Got on the pitch and was immediately involved. Roaming and connecting with all of his teammates. You felt if Madrid were to create anything, it would come from Isco’s boots. Managed a key pass in his 15 minute cameo.