Real Madrid Player Ratings vs. Celta Vigo: Late Heroics Save Los Blancos From Despair

Álvaro Arbeloa’s men kept their La Liga title hopes alive by collecting three points in Vigo.

Fede Valverde (left) secured three points for Real Madrid. | Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images

Real Madrid pulled off a last-gasp 2–1 win over Celta Vigo on Friday night, thanks to a stoppage time winner from Federico Valverde.

The Spanish giants took the early lead through a bit of set piece magic from Arda Güler, whose short corner found the right foot of Aurélien Tchouaméni. The French international sent a perfectly weighted strike off the post and past Ionuț Radu to put his side up 1–0 in the 11th minute.

Celta Vigo responded by taking advantage of a poor defensive sequence from the visitors that ended with Borja Iglesias bringing the game level in the 25th minute. The goals indicated a back-and-forth game to come, but the match unfolded with little flare from either team until a desperate shot from Valverde took a heavy deflection on its way into the back of the net with only seconds left to play.

Real Madrid escaped with three points they arguably did not deserve, but they won’t care one bit. The 15-time European champions are now within one point of bitter rivals Barcelona, who sit atop the La Liga standings and are set to play Athletic Club on Saturday evening.

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The Problem That Won’t Go Away

Trent Alexander-Arnold (center) was caught out yet again. | Denis Doyle/Getty Images

Even though Real Madrid secured a last-minute victory, front and center of their underwhelming performance was once again the team’s lackadaisical defending.

Sure, Arbeloa does not have his strongest backline available—Éder Militão, Dean Huijsen and Álvaro Carreras, three of the manager’s usual starters, all missed out on the trip to Vigo—but, still Los Blancos’ defense was made up of three Champions League winners in Trent Alexander-Arnold, Antonio Rüdiger and Ferland Mendy, as well as the physical and generally solid Raúl Asencio. The players were nevertheless ruthlessly carved apart in the 25th minute.

Celta Vigo winger Williot Swedberg got in behind Alexander-Arnold without much effort and then was off to the races. The Real Madrid fullback tried to make up for his initial blunder by keeping pace with the Swede down the right flank, but he was easily shrugged off inside the box, allowing Swedberg to find Iglesias with a simple cut back.

Neither Rüdiger nor Asencio picked up the striker’s run, looking like two lost children as they stood and watched Tchouaméni try and disrupt Iglesias to no avail. The defensive sequence is just the latest in a long line of errors at the back for the Spanish giants this season, and no one will be more delighted to see the breakdown than their next opponents, Man City.

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Real Madrid Player Ratings vs. Celta Vigo (4-3-3)

Aurélien Tchouaméni scored the opener for Real Madrid on the night. | Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images

*Ratings Provided by FotMob*

GK: Thibaut Courtois—7.9: Continuously bailed out his team with the poise of arguably the best goalkeeper in the world. Might have no voice left after yelling at his defense all night.

RB: Trent Alexander-Arnold—7.8: Completely to blame for Celta Vigo’s equalizer, from his poor positioning to his lack of recovery. Did little to silence his critics, and perhaps paved the way for Dani Carvajal to fight his way back into the team.

CB: Raúl Asencio—6.8: Fell asleep in defense on multiple occasions in the early stages. Recovered well in the second half.

CB: Antonio Rüdiger—7.7: Did his best Alexander-Arnold impression with a few pinpoint balls over the top. Failed to effectively organize the backline he leads.

LB: Ferland Mendy—7.9: Handled an unexpected start well. Looked sharp on the ball and sturdy inside his own half. As always, lacked much prowess going forward.

CM: Federico Valverde—8.5: Did well to help Real Madrid take full control of the match in the second half and put on a cape to snatch the win for his side, looking every bit the captain the team needed him to be.

CM: Aurélien Tchouaméni—8.9: Continues to be the midfield standout for Real Madrid. Scored a sublime goal and did his best to mop up his defense’s mistakes. Will wish he did more on Iglesias’s goal, though.

CM: Thiago Pitarch—6.6: His work rate once again took center stage as he actively pressured Celta Vigo players on the ball at every chance he got. Tidy in possession, but would have liked to help his side penetrate the hosts’ low block more effectively.

RW: Brahim Díaz—7.2: Failed to make the most of a rare start. Lacked chemistry with Vinicius Jr and struggled to link up with Alexander-Arnold. Ended the night with zero shots.

ST: Arda Güler—7.9: Will feel the release of some pressure after tallying an assist, his first goal contribution in eight games. Unhappy to come off just past the hour-mark, but he hardly did enough to stay in the game beyond his one bit of set piece magic.

LW: Vinicius Junior—7.9: Unlucky not to score in the early stages after his shot ricocheted off the post. Looked uncomfortable when he drifted into a more central role, but found little success when he returned to his favored left wing.

SUB: César Palacios (65’ for Güler)—6.4: Made a few encouraging runs to try and get involved. Committed a costly foul in the build-up that prevented Real Madrid from getting a penalty.

SUB: Gonazlo García (77’ for Díaz)—5.9: Had little impact on the game in his brief cameo.

SUB: Manuel Ángel (90’ for Pitarch)—N/A

Subs not used: Andriy Lunin (GK), Sergio Mestre (GK), Dani Carvajal, Diego Aguado, Fran García, Lamini Fati, Jorge Cestero.

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What the Ratings Tell Us

Arda Güler is struggling for consistency. | Irina R. Hipolito/Europa Press/Getty Images

• Ferland Mendy has seemingly leapfrogged Fran García to become Real Madrid’s backup left back. The Frenchman certainly brings more defensive security to the left flank, but his lack of influence going forward is perhaps not what the team needed on a night it struggled for creativity.
• Álvaro Arbeloa is putting his trust in his former Castilla players Thiago Pitarch and César Palacios. The two youngsters logged heavy minutes and had bright moments, sending a warning sign to the team’s slew of lackluster midfielders, including Arda Güler.
• Brahim Díaz is not the answer to Los Blancos’ scoring woes in the absence of Kylian Mbappé. The Morocco international never looked much of a threat to create or score, simply taking up space for most of the night before Gonzalo García replaced him in the 77th minute.

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The Numbers That Explain Real Madrid’s Lackluster Win

Álvaro Arbeloa is officially on the hot seat at Real Madrid. | Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images

• Real Madrid outperformed their 0.87 xG on the night, but they cannot rely on such strokes of good fortune to propel them over the finish line against a club of higher quality.
• Once again the Spanish giants looked lost in the final third, as evidenced by the zero big chances they created in 90 minutes plus stoppage time.
• Without Kylian Mbappé, the team only managed to rally three shots on target, but it will be happy that two of those found the back of the net.

Statistic	Celta Vigo	Real Madrid
Possession	37%	63%
Expected Goals (xG)	1.05	0.87
Total Shots	8	14
Shots on Target	4	3
Big Chances	1	0
Pass Accuracy	87%	91%
Fouls	4	12
Corners	1	6

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