Real Madrid-Barcelona El Clasico player ratings: Benzema, Valverde lead Los Blancos as Messi struggles

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Real Madrid won El Clasico on Saturday with a hard-fought win under heavy rain, beating Barcelona 2-1. Los Blancos were the stronger team in the first half, but it was all Barca in the second half as the hosts needed a bit of good fortune to secure the three points and jump into first place.

But how did everybody perform? Here are our player ratings:

Real Madrid

Thibaut Courtois -- GK

Played 90 minutes

Wasn't tested until Madrid were already up two goals. Almost conceded an olimpico in the first half and not much he could do against Mingueza on the goal in the second. Rating: 7

Lucas Vasquez -- DEF

Played 43 minutes

Left with an injury before halftime but you can't ask for more than he gave before he departed. Had the assist to Benzema on the opener, hit the bar himself later, and completely shut down his counterpart Alba. Rating: 7

Eder Militao -- DEF

Played 90 minutes

When things got sloppy in the rain in the second half Militao got beaten at the point of attack as Griezmann set up Barcelona's goal. Other than that moment though he stood tall in the face of lots of Barcelona deep possession. Rating: 6

Nacho Fernandez -- DEF

Played 90 minutes

Similar to Militao, but he was the more aggressive CB stepping and contesting the ball at the point of attack. You'd like to see him win more of those balls so the defense bent less, but he shares the credit for it not breaking. Rating: 6

Ferland Mendy -- DEF

Played 90 minutes

Didn't get forward, and almost gave away a penalty twice, oce in each half, but the key word is almost. Didn't cost his team, perhaps thanks to generous refereeing, even if he didn't add much. Rating: 5

Luka Modric -- MID

Played 90 minutes

Madrid's midfield passers didn't do much to slow Barca down, leaving that to the defense, and didn't have much of the ball, but Modric made the most of the chances he got, springing Vinicius Junior for several dangerous counters. Rating: 6

Casemiro -- MID (Red Card 90')

Played 90 minutes

Ruined a great night when he contested everything in midfield with two late yellows. Led the team in tackles attempted, interceptions, and duels. When Barcelona's possession was stopped it was because Casemiro stopped it. But put Madrid under tremendous late pressure by getting sent off. Rating: 6

Toni Kroos -- MID (⚽ 28')

Played 71 minutes

During the run of play he struggled to make an impact in a game where Madrid ceded possession. But he wasn't a defensive liability and he scored a goal from a set piece and almost a second on a header. Rating: 7

Federico Valverde -- FWD

Played 60 minutes

Played a slightly unfamiliar right wing position, and played it spectacularly. Largely responsible for the first goal with his driving run past Alba, and spent much of the match dropping all the way into the back line as an extra right back to shut down Barcelona's attack. Rating: 8

Vinicius Junior -- FWD

Played 71 minutes

Looked dangerous on the counter a few times, but couldn't make all the pieces come together. Eventually subbed off for a more defensive presence as Zidane looked to protect his lead. Rating: 6

Karim Benzema -- FWD (⚽ 14')

Played 71 minutes

Scored his goal early on a brilliant finish, got three shots before getting subbed off. Just another day at the office for the iconic Madrid striker having perhaps the best year of his career.. Rating: 7

Alvaro Odriozola -- Sub (Vazquez 43')

Played 47 minutes

Barcelona's goal came down his half, but other than he had a quiet night, tasked with staying back and tucking narrow, he did his job. Rating: 6

Marco Asensio -- Sub (Valverde 61')

Played 29 minutes

Presumably Asensio was supposed to help Madrid keep the ball more and settle the match as Barcelona were pressing for an equalizer. But he barely touched it. Rating: 4

Mariano -- Sub (Benzema 72')

Played 18 minutes

A thankless job, coming in as a lone striker when Madrid were committed to defending a lead without the ball. He gamely defended from the front.. Rating: 5

Isco -- Sub (Kroos 72')

Played 18 minutes

Played in more advanced positions than Kroos and popped up for a couple of dangerous shots in the box that ended up amounting to nothing. Rating: 6

Marcelo -- Sub (Vinicius Junior 72')

Played 18 minutes

Ended the match playing essentially the same role on the left side that Valverde began the match playing on the right. Sprang a dangerous counter and almost slipped in behind in injury time but wasn't really involved. Rating: 6

Zidane -- Manager

Got it all right in the end. The approach to cede possession worked, playing Valverde on the right led directly to the first goal. Perhaps lucky to see it out, for all three points, but you can't ask for more from a manager. Rating: 8

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Barcelona

Marc-Andre Ter Stegen -- Goalkeeper

Played 90 minutes

The German really didn't have to deal with a whole lot. Getting beat by Benzema was rough, but he could do nothing on the free kick. Had a couple good stops up high. Rating: 6

Clement Lenglet -- Defender

Played 90 minutes

Got forward quite a lot. In defense he was able to hold his own when defending one on one. Really improved as the match went on and was critical in getting the late chance. Rating: 7

Ronald Araujo -- Defender (yellow card)

Played 72 minutes

Up and down. Had some decent moments in the second half, but he was left stunned by Benzema's goal, failing to close down well enough. His hustle was admirable. Rating: 6

Oscar Mingueza -- Defender

Played 90 minutes

Slow to react early on, and his passing was off. In attack, he got a goal with a very fortunate touch, but his positioning was positive. To his credit, he got better throughout the match. Rating: 7

Jordi Alba -- Midfield (yellow card)

Played 90 minutes

Did a fantastic job of getting in behind the backline, and he really played some fine balls across the face of goal. He was always aware of what was around him and found space brilliantly to receive the ball. Recorded an assist. Rating: 7

Frenkie de Jong -- Midfield

Played 90 minutes

The Dutchman didn't stand out for anything. It was a quiet match where he wasn't able to find space with the ball and create really anything impactful. Rating: 4

Sergio Busquets -- Midfield

Played 64 minutes

Taken off early in the second half. He did the usual of just quickly passing to whoever gave him the ball, turning and moving it around. Nothing to write home about. Rating: 4

Sergino Dest -- Midfield

Played 45 minutes

Not great. Pace was good, but his passing was quite poor. Also turned his back on a free kick and knocked it into the goal as a result. Rating: 3

Pedri -- Midfield

Played 81 minutes

He wasn't involved much in the match and lasted longer than he should of. Real were able to close him down well. Just a forgettable showing, but the effort was there. Rating: 4

Lionel Messi -- Forward

Played 90 minutes

Tried to get the attack going, and his passes wide were precise. He wasn't ever much of a threat on goal though, and that is even with a few really good looks from set pieces. He knows he should have done better, but his fellow attackers let him down. Rating: 6

Ousmane Dembele -- Forward

Played 81 minutes

Another one of the performances where you question his ability and whether he will actually take off and become consistent. Just poor decisions, slow to react and tried to do too much. Rating: 4

Antoine Griezmann -- Sub (Dest 45')

Played 45 minutes

Next to nothing from him in the second half, aside from a dummy that led to the goal. Rating: 5

Sergi Roberto -- Sub (Busquests 64')

Played 26 minutes

Back from injury, and he looked decent on the ball, getting towards the right to play Mingueza. Rating: 6

Ilaix Moriba -- Sub (Araujo 72')

Played 18 minutes

Rocked a shot off the crossbar in the final moments. Showed heart and fight. Rating: 6

Martin Braithwaite -- Sub (Dembele 81')

Played 9 minutes

Almost won a penalty kick with his hustle, but not once did he get to show his shooting ability. Rating: 5

Francisco Trinaco -- Sub (Pedri 81')

Played 9 minutes

Late sub that didn't get a decent look on frame. Rating: 5

Ronald Koeman -- Manager

Made sense to bring on Griezmann at the break, and his team did get forward well. This is one of those games that just makes you wonder, what if they still had Luis Suarez? They showed fight, they deserved a point, but it wasn't meant to be. They lacked the sharpness needed, with several players failing to perform. Rating: 4