Carlo Ancelotti named an unchanged lineup from Real Madrid’s UCL winning final against Liverpool. Los Blancos got a taste of some early season silverware as David Alaba and Karim Benzema were on point to give Real Madrid their 5th UEFA Super Cup. Here are my ratings from the game:
Thibaut Courtois(7/10): Made 3 crucial saves, one of which came early on in the game denying Daichi Kamada who could have started the scoring. Made a few claims settling the gameplay in Real Madrid’s favour
Ferland Mendy (7/10): Was nice and tight at the back with occasionally moving up the pitch. Attempted a few crosses which eventually found no one but accustomed well in distributing the ball from tight areas.
David Alaba (7.5/10): Scored the opener of the game by being present at the correct position at the right time. Was effective in defending and marking the likes of Kamada and N’dicka.
Eder Militão (7.5/10): Synced well with his defensive partner David Alaba. Was defensively sound and neutralised any imminent with ease apart from a few shaky moments in the early phase of the game.
Dani Carvajal (7/10): Went head-on with the Eintracht players and locked down his part of the flank well with Valverde. Won 2 of his attempted ground duels and was substituted off in the 85th minute.
Casemiro (8/10): Same as he plays round the year, he was a tank during the hours of this game. Kept the momentum going from the corner resulting in a goal and assisting Alaba. He neutralised any advances from the dangerous Kamada and his attacking compatriots. Tried a long-range shot but ultimately hit the woodwork.
Toni Kroos (7/10): Another usual day in the office for our German maestro who completed the most passes in the match (97). Had a pass success rate of 94% and dictated the tempo of the game. Found Benzema from a tight angle which could have been something by quickly accelerating and winning a lay ball. Substituted off in the 85th minute.
Luka Modric (6.5/10): Had a few shaky moments and also got dispossessed two times. Eintracht didn’t let him grow into the match further by tightly marking him. Not in his usual self, he was substituted off in the 65th minute making way for Rodrygo. Won 33% of his ground duels but ended his game with a 93% pass success rate.
Fede Valverde (7.5/10): It’s a myth that Valverde has only two lungs, he was literally present everywhere on the pitch, starting off as a RWB and then gradually locking down that entire wing. Made 6 recoveries and won 2 of his ground duels out of an attempted 4. Showed an exemplary display, cutting out opponent passing lanes and supporting the defence whenever Eintracht approached the final thirds of the pitch.
Vini Jr. (7.5/10): Missed a huge chance orchestrated by Benzema in the first half and got denied by a goal line clearance from Eintracht’s Tuta. Got dispossessed several times and was well covered by the opponent defenders. In the second half, he gradually brought himself into the game starting off with invoking a measured acceleration, ruining the Eintracht resistance and finding Benzema leading to the score getting 2-0. Was the most fouled player in the match (3), clearly showing the peril he causes to the opposition even when he doesn’t get everything right.
Karim Benzema (8.5/10): Helped in the link-up game from the midfield to the forward. Latched on Vini with a few incisive through balls tormenting the Eintracht defence. Scored from a powered yet calculated shot from a Vini pass from across the pitch and thus putting him up there on the scoresheet.
Substitutes
Rodrygo (5/10): Linked up well from the midfield acting as a ball carrier by latching himself onto a few through balls, brought pace to the game and won 3 of his attempted ground duels.
Eduardo Camavinga, Antonio Rudiger, Aurelien Tchouameni and Dani Ceballos are the players that came on late and couldn’t make a significant impact on the game.
