The situation
Real Madrid came back from 0-1 in the first leg of the Cup semifinals at the Camp Nou with a convincing performance at the Camp Nou: weak in the first half, in which they gradually won thanks to a goal from Vinicius; and much better in the second half, with Vinicius and Benzema unleashed. Outstanding Camavinga as a winger and second imperial part of Modric.
Courtois : first part of tense calm for the Belgian; Barcelona worried, but without making clear chances except for a Raphinha header that he cleared without problems. After 0-2, he got a good hand from Balde with a powerful shot. And little else, it was a relatively calm day for the Belgian, favored by a Barça short of ideas.
Carvajal : very weak first part of the side, with many problems to stop Balde and hardly contributing in attack. He improved in the second half, like all of Madrid, but without showing off. He is not in a good mood.
Militao – Huge first half from the Brazilian, clearing every ball that passed through his zone. And from a ball of his that he took from the baseline, Benzema made it 0-2. He is in spectacular shape. Praise : also good in the first half, despite the fact that he had to fight for each divided ball with Lewandowski, a powerful striker in disputes. Perhaps he lacked more clarity in the delivery of the ball, which he found more clearly in the second half.
Camavinga : he gave the scare in the first minutes and it seemed that he was not going to be able to continue, but he recovered. Raphinha put him to the test more than once and the Frenchman delivered with flying colors in those one-on-ones, especially one in which the Brazilian went alone towards Courtois. With the passing of the minutes, his party became imperial; It’s normal for Ancelotti to want to use him there with performances like this.
Valverde : very inconsequential first part of the Uruguayan, without providing verticality with the ball or arrival. From a clearance of his for Rodrygo came Vinicius’s 0-1. After the break he stuck more to the right flank and left the playmaker to Rodrygo; Logically, that’s how the first goal had come. And he improved a lot, like all of Madrid.
Kroos : The first half suffered a lot for the German, with many difficulties to stop Barcelona’s inside game. Better in the second half, like the rest of the team. He found many more spaces with Barça looking for an impossible comeback.
Modric : Madrid’s best midfielder, with difficulties connecting with his teammates in a flat first half for the Whites, but always trying to find depth. His action in the 0-2 was postcard: great start and assistance for Benzema. The second part of it was vintage. He gave way to Tchouameni at 85 ′.
Rodrygo : very lost in the first half, yet he was the attacker who was most dangerous in the first half. And from a clearance that found him in the midfielder the whites made it 0-1. In the second half he moved a lot more in that position and Madrid noticed it. He almost made it 0-4 with a pass from Modric, he needed to jump for the ball a second before. He left the site at 72 ′ to Asensio.
Benzema : discreet first half, and yet it was influential: he gave Vinicius a golden ball to make it 0-1. In the second half he broke out: he made it 0-2 with a perfect strike, 0-3 from a penalty and 0-4 finishing with pause against Ter Stegen after a great pass from Vinicius. He is definitely back. And Madrid does not notice. He left at 88′ for Nacho.
Vinicius stance
Vinicius : very diffused first part of the Brazilian, who earned an absurd yellow card in a fight with Gavi (the Catalan also saw it). But he appeared when he played, to take advantage of Benzema’s brilliant pass and make it 0-1. In the second half he improved a lot in his duel with Araújo, leaving a beautiful dribble and causing the 0-3 penalty, in which Kessié caught him late. He served Asensio a great ball that almost ended at 0-4. With spaces, he began to be lethal and that’s how he helped Benzema 0-4, with a fine technical sample. He left at 85 ′ for Ceballos to enter, at a time when he was getting into trouble again, this time with Araújo.