Another night in the Champions League, another Karim Benzema hat-trick as Real Madrid took a 3-1 lead at Stamford Bridge. A place in the semi-finals isn’t entirely certain yet, but Los Blancos squandered all their chances after this impressive win. Full player ratings below;
Thibaut Courtois-7: We’re used to a certain excellence of Real Madrid’s two axes in attack and goal and on Wednesday night it was no different. The Belgian wasn’t too busy against Chelsea but the saves he was expected to make were outstanding and could prove crucial in deciding this clash at the Bernabeu next week.
David Alaba-7: The Austrian bounced back from a challenging game against Celta with a strong performance at Stamford Bridge over the weekend. No chairs this time, which of course lowers his rating.
Eder Militao-6: If I had to criticize that performance, it would be that Militao didn’t have an excellent game. Suspended for the first leg, he found it easy to play in a dangerous position in the first half and was one of the players to lose to Kai Havertz in Chelsea goal earlier.
Dani Carvajal-6: Was beaten all for the Chelsea goal in the end and then almost redeemed himself by scoring at the other end. Didn’t do anything special in the second half which is probably a good thing given Carvajal’s form this year.
Casemiro-7.5: I felt Casemiro had an excellent game, especially in the first half where he was so prominent in disrupting Chelsea’s attempts to play through the middle. He also had a good day with possession, connecting most of his passes without producing anything too impressive.
Toni Kroos-7: Was a good exit in the first half. I felt like he wasn’t very prominent in the second 45 and in terms of passes attempted he was the slightly calmer midfielder.
Luka Modric-7.5: His old age only makes his divine abilities all the more glorious.
Fede Valverde-8.5: Maybe debatable but I thought Fede was Real Madrid’s second best player on the pitch on Wednesday. The Uruguayan, deployed on the right wing, played a classic Valderde game. He was energetic, aggressive and productive on the flank and a performance like this will have Oscar Tabarez scratching his head at how Ancelotti could coax such an outstanding performance from the midfielder on the flank.
Vinicius Junior-8: You’d bet your house on Vinicius completing that shot that smacked off the crossbar, but I was impressed by Vini’s ability to take stock and shortly afterwards create a superb assist for Karim’s first goal. He gave Christiansen a run for his money in the first half and fought James a little more in the second.
Karim Benzema-9: Remember that game against Valencia where Benzema missed six or seven chances and we all thought his time at Madrid was over? I think we all knew he had games like this in him, but some of us feared we’d never see it. Now these performances are a weekly event and each adds a little more drama to the reversal that Benzema’s legacy has taken at Real Madrid. breathtaking.
substitutions
Nacho Fernández-5.5: He arrived for Militao at the same time as Lukaku rolled onto the pitch for Chelsea and immediately the Belgian had two chances in the air. You certainly feel that this duel with Militao, who is suspended for the second leg, is still alive.
Eduardo Camavinga-N/A: Didn’t have enough time to make a difference
Dani Ceballos -N/A: Came into the game late
Gareth Bale-N/A: Ditto Bale