Football

Champions League: Real Madrid 2-1 Atletico Madrid – Player Ratings As Brahim Diaz and Rodrygo Seal Narrow Win for Los Blancos in Round of 16 First Leg

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Sushan Chakraborty
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Sushan Chakraborty Sports Editor

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Published05 Mar 2025

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UEFA Champions League holders Real Madrid secured a crucial 2-1 victory over Atletico Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in the first leg of their Round-of-16 clash on Tuesday night, 4th March.

It marked Los Blancos’ first victory over Los Colchoneros since January 2024. Their previous three meetings had all ended in 1-1 draws. Read on to check out the player ratings for both teams in the Champions League Round of 16 first leg.

Real Madrid 2-1 Atletico Madrid: Champions League Round of 16 First Leg Player Ratings

Real Madrid Player Ratings

Thibaut Courtois (6/10):

The former Atletico Madrid goalkeeper leapt across to stop Julian Alvarez’s effort but came up short. His 60th-minute parry to deny Antoine Griezmann was worthy of applause.

Federico Valverde (8/10):

Real Madrid captain Federico Valverde put in another immense shift on Tuesday. The make-shift right-back played a brilliant through-ball for Rodrygo’s opener and made some vital clearances.

Raul Asencio (7/10):

Playing the biggest game of his career, young Raul Asencio did well to hold his own against tried-and-tested Atletico attackers. Was lucky to get away with a foul on Julian Alvarez.

Antonio Rudiger (6/10):

Antonio Rudiger has delivered some brilliant performances over the last couple of seasons, but he was not at his best on Tuesday night. Made some fine forward runs though.

Ferland Mendy (7/10):

Ferland Mendy put in a solid performance in the Champions League Round of 16 first leg against Atletico Madrid. He was strong at the back and smartly assisted Brahim Diaz’s winner.

Aurelien Tchouameni (6/10):

Aurelien Tchouameni is slowly coming into his own in the holding midfield role. He completed 86 es against Atletico Madrid (96% accuracy), with 13 of them breaching the final third. Long balls need to improve (50% accuracy).

Eduardo Camavinga (4.5/10):

Was convincingly outsmarted by Julian Alvarez for Atletico Madrid’s equalizer. ing was tidy (40/41 completed) but was weak in ground duels (won 3, lost 4).

Brahim Diaz (8.5/10):

Operating in the Jude Bellingham role, Brahim Diaz delivered a scintillating performance. He was sharp, knocked the ball around brilliantly, and left multiple Atletico Madrid defenders in the dust to score the winning goal in the 55th minute. Easily the man of the match.

Rodrygo (8/10):

The least-hyped member of the Real Madrid attack, Rodrygo gave hosts a dream start just four minutes in, zipping past Javi Galan and beating Jan Oblak with a thumping left-footed effort. Sensational.

Kylian Mbappe (4/10):

A night to forget for Kylian Mbappe. While he was involved, he never looked like hurting Atletico. Mbappe also failed to set Vinicius Jr. up for a tap-in at the death.

Vinicius Jr. (5/10):

Snoozed his way through the first three quarters of the game. The Brazilian needs to produce a much better shift in the second leg.

Subs

Luka Modric (5/10): Replaced Eduardo Camavinga in the 62nd minute. Could not dictate play.

Lucas Vazquez (5/10): Was on the pitch for 10 odd minutes. Ran well.

Endrick (N/A): Came on in the 89th minute. Did not have time to make an impact.

Atletico Madrid Player Ratings

Jan Oblak (6.5/10):

The Slovenian goalkeeper is one of the best in the business, but even he had no answer for Rodrygo and Brahim Diaz’s world-class strikes. Made five saves throughout the game.

Marcos Llorente (7/10): 

Like Federico Valverde, Marcos Llorente has also made a habit of excelling in unorthodox positions. Did well to keep Vinicius Jr. quiet in the first half.

Jose Gimenez (6.5/10): 

Jose Maria Gimenez was relentless against Real Madrid. Unfortunately lost his footing during Brahim Diaz’s second-half winner.

Clement Lenglet (7/10):

Former Barcelona defender Clement Lenglet could have done better to stop Federico Valverde from finding Rodrygo in the first half. However, he did not let that setback define his game. Made four clearances and won three ground duels.

Javi Galan (6/10):

Rodrygo turned Javi Galan for Real Madrid’s rapid opener and continued to torment him all through the first half. Galan, however, learned from his mistakes and improved in the second half.

Giuliano Simeone (5.5/10): 

Diego Simeone’s son, Giuliano, knocked the ball around well, but he did not do anything to write home about. Came off just past the hour mark.

Rodrigo De Paul (6.5/10):

The 2022 FIFA World Cup-winning midfielder Rodrigo De Paul was omnipresent on Tuesday night. Completed 74 es, created a goalscoring opportunity, drew two fouls and made three recoveries. Solid shift.

Pablo Barrios (6.5/10):

The 21-year-old had a shaky start to the game but improved considerably as the match wore on. Completed 72 es with 94% accuracy and made seven recoveries.

Samuel Lino (5.5/10):

Operated as an auxiliary attacker against Real Madrid. Should have done better to put pressure on out-of-position Federico Valverde.

Julian Alvarez (7.5/10):

Atletico Madrid’s saviour, Julian Alvarez scored a superb goal against Real Madrid. After outsmarting Eduardo Camavinga, he cut inside from the left and beat Thibaut Courtois with an audacious strike. He also created a chance.

Antoine Griezmann (6/10): 

One of the best players in Europe, Antoine Griezmann had a relatively quiet night in the Champions League Round of 16 first leg. Had one shot, which Thibaut Courtois parried.

Subs

Nahuel Molina (6/10): A good shift after coming on in the 64th minute. Held his own against experienced Real Madrid midfielders.

Conor Gallagher (6.5/10): Coming in alongside Molina, Conor Gallagher infused the Atletico Madrid midfield with raw energy.

Robin Le Normand (6/10): Did well to bolster the defence after ing in the 71st minute.

Angel Correa (5/10): Could not trouble the Real Madrid back line.

Alexander Sorloth (5/10): The towering centre-forward did not get enough crosses to showcase his aerial prowess.