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Player Ratings: Elche 1 - 2 Real Madrid; 2022 Copa Del Rey Round of 16

A “remontada” in the Copa Del Rey ensures Real Madrid’s passage to the Quarter Finals.

Elche v Real Madrid - Copa Del Rey Photo by Antonio Villalba/Real Madrid via Getty Images

The first of back to back matches against Elche would feature a single elimination game in the round of 16 in the Copa Del Rey. After securing the Super Cup title in Saudi Arabia on Sunday, Carlo Ancelotti opted to make some rotations. Camavinga and Valverde slotted into the midfield, Nacho and Marcelo plugged into the backline, Jovic replaced Benzema up top, and Lunin kept his place as the cup goalkeeper. An even affair was ultimately decided in extra time. Elche scored the first after Marcelo was sent off, but Madrid responded with two goals — one from Isco and the late game-winner from Eden Hazard to complete the comeback.

Andriy Lunin—7: Made two saves, one from inside the box. Improved with his distribution and looked confident in net.

Lucas Vazquez5: Solid defensively, keeping Fidel quiet but was underwhelming in the final third. Missed a huge chance to go-ahead in the first half after failing to connect with a Vinicius cross.

Nacho—6: Some sloppy giveaways late in the second half that led to dangerous opportunities for Elche. Guido Carrillo and Lucas Perez gave both Alaba and Nacho a tough time.

David Alaba8: Played more like a left back in this match than a left center back as he was constantly overlapping or finding himself on the wing. Produced an immaculate pass for the game-winning goal from the left back position.

Marcelo—7: Despite the red card and despite the early missed clearance, Marcelo had his best game in years. Was ever-present in the attack, combined well with Vinicius Junior, and showed off his skill 1 v 1 on more than one occasion.

Toni Kroos—8: The German is so incredibly consistent. 118 touches, 100 passes (96.2% PA), 2 key passes, 11 of 12 long balls completed.

Fede Valverde—4: Has failed to rediscover the form he had under Zidane in 2019/2020. His key attributes, like ball carrying, late arriving runs from midfield, and defensive pressure were all lacking.

Eduardo Camavinga—6.5: Played as the lone defensive midfield pivot, but was supported by Kroos when building out from the back. Managed a couple of shots at goal and progressed the ball well with his dribbling. An encouraging performance with more to come from the 19-year-old.

Rodrygo—6.5: In the first half, all the best attacking output came from the wings with both Brazilians trying to work their magic. Rodrygo was missing the final pass and only truly had chemistry with Vinicius — there were little to no connections with Jovic and Valverde.

Vinicius Junior—8.5: A team high of 9 completed dribbles — Vinicius was a constant thorn in Elche’s side. The Brazilian was relentless in his pursuit of goal and arguably should have done better with his final product on the night.

Luka Jovic—3: Poor match from Jovic, who failed to connect with teammates. A mere 23 touches in his 79 minutes on the field with no shots, no dribbles, no key passes, not even a characteristic long ball to switch the field of play.

Substitutions:

Casemiro—6: An assured presence in the midfield.

Luka Modric—6: Tracked back well, especially with 10 men.

Isco—8.5: An immediate impact in place of Jovic playing as a false 9. Things seemed to click once the former Malaga man came on to the pitch. Scored an opportunistic goal to equalize the match in extra time.

Eden Hazard—7: Scored the game winning goal with a composure acquiescent to the Chelsea version of Hazard. Otherwise was very quiet in his performance and looked labored trying to track back prior to the Marcelo red card.

Dani Ceballos—8: A much needed spark to the midfield. Connected the dots and helped progress play into the final third.

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