Real Madrid Player Ratings vs. Real Sociedad: Vinicius Jr Dazzles Without Kylian Mbappe

Los Blancos now sit atop the La Liga standings ahead of Barcelona’s game on Monday.

Vinicius Junior was on fire against Real Sociedad. | Burak Akbulut/Anadolu/Getty Images

Real Madrid extended their La Liga winning streak to eight games with a dominant 4–1 victory over Real Sociedad on Saturday night.

The 15-time European champions were all over their opponents from the opening whistle, even with Kylian Mbappé on the bench due a knee injury. Trent Alexander-Arnold found Gonzalo García for the game’s opening goal inside of five minutes and Los Blancos were off to the races.

Mikel Oyarzabal momentarily pulled Real Sociedad level from the penalty spot, but there was no denying Real Madrid, led by a sensational performance from Vinicius Junior. The Brazilian won two penalties and converted both to bag a brace, while Federico Valverde joined in on the scoring with curling strike from the top of the box.

The victory puts Álvaro Arbeloa’s men atop the La Liga standings for the weekend, before Barcelona face off with Girona on Monday evening.

---

One Thing We Can’t Ignore

Gonzalo (left) and Trent Alexander-Arnold linked up for the game’s opening goal. | Oscar J. Barroso/Europa Press/Getty Images

It only took five minutes for Trent Alexander-Arnold to make his presence felt on Saturday night. The England international got the nod for the first time since suffering a hamstring injury on Dec. 3 and looked sharp from the opening whistle, a sign of things to come.

As soon as the opportunity arose, Alexander-Arnold played in a delicious, trademark ball from the right flank with enough bend and power to find a streaking Gonzalo inside the box. The striker only needed one touch to send the ball into the bottom left corner of the net to give Real Madrid the early lead.

The assist was just the beginning for Alexander-Arnold. The 27-year-old played exquisite ball after exquisite ball to effortlessly switch the field of play, find his teammates up top or kickstart an attack out of nowhere. In just 60 minutes, he registered an assist, delivered eight accurate long balls and created two chances.

For the first time in a very long time, Real Madrid were just as dangerous down the right-hand side of the pitch as they were down the left, and it was all thanks to Alexander-Arnold’s presence. The fullback helped the hosts stretch the field, opening gaps for his team to relentlessly exploit—a warning to Los Blancos’ future opponents.

---

Real Madrid Player Ratings vs. Real Sociedad (4-4-2)

Gonzalo García bagged his fourth La Liga goal of the season. | Oscar J. Barroso/Europa Press/Getty Images

*Ratings Provided by FotMob*

GK: Thibaut Courtois—7.2: Hardly called upon, but made two nice saves just past the hour-mark to deny Real Sociedad what looked like two surefire goals.

RB: Trent Alexander-Arnold—7.7: Simply sublime. Showed no signs of rust after so long on the sidelines and delivered a masterful performance down the right flank, headlined by his assist on the game’s opening goal.

CB: Antonio Rüdiger—6.6: Impressed in his first game since the Spanish Super Cup semifinals. Did not have to over-exert himself thanks to his team’s dominance.

CB: Dean Huijsen—6.8: Another trying night for the young defender. Committed a terribly mistimed tackle inside his own box to gift Real Sociedad a penalty. Continues to look timid and out of his depth without the ball at his feet.

LB: Álvaro Carreras—8.1: Hardly put a foot wrong in defense and assisted Valverde’s goal to contribute to the attack for the second consecutive game. One of the most trustworthy, consistent players in white.

RM: Federico Valverde—8.3: Bagged a goal from the top of the box that Toni Kroos would be proud of. Finally looked comfortable back in the midfield, a sigh of relief for Real Madrid.

CM: Arda Güler—7.2: A quiet night for the Turkish youngster, whose brilliant set piece deliveries were not needed. Took a couple frustrated shots from distance and failed to finish a great chance on the counter attack in the dying stages.

CM: Aurélien Tchouaméni—7.6: Received a deserved standing ovation when he came off the pitch. Only misplaced two passes, made four tackles and delivered four long balls in an all-around performance.

LM: Eduardo Camavinga—7.3: Not one of his better defensive outings. Extremely fortunate to avoid a yellow card after a few poorly timed tackles in quick succession. Made up for it, though, with his contributions to the attack.

ST: Gonzalo García—7,7: Found the back of the net inside of five minutes, but will be kicking himself for squandering a golden chance at the end of the first half. Also had a chance cleared off the line in the 70th minute.

ST: Vinicius Junior—9.3: Put on a show. Won two penalties with jaw-dropping dribbles into the box and converted both to score a brace for the first time since October. Played with immense freedom in the absence of Mbappé.

SUB: David Alaba (59’ for Rüdiger)—6.5: Completely caught out on what looked like Real Sociedad’s second goal, but was saved by the offside flag.

SUB: Dani Carvajal (60’ for Alexander-Arnold)—6.0: Nearly gifted Real Sociedad a goal with a horrible header inside his own box that came nowhere close to Thibaut Courtois.

SUB: Dani Ceballos (73’ for Camavinga)—6.4: Did not misplace a pass in his short, yet solid cameo.

SUB: Brahim Díaz (73’ for Valverde)—6.0: Failed to get involved in the attack.

SUB: Jorge Cestero (79’ for Tchouaméni)—6.0: Did not have enough time to make his presence felt.

Subs not used: Andriy Lunin (GK), Ferland Mendy, Fran García, Raúl Asencio, César Palacios, Franco Mastantuono, Kylian Mbappé.

---

What the Ratings Tell Us

Vinicius Junior bagged a brace in Real Madrid’s victory. | Burak Akbulut/Anadolu/Getty Images

• Dean Huijsen is on the brink of losing his place in the XI. The defender is far too prone to mistakes at the back and is a liability against better teams coming up in the schedule. With Rüdiger now back from injury, Arbeloa could favor the German alongside Raúl Asencio as his top center back pairing.
• Vinicius Jr is at his best when the team runs through him. Without Kylian Mbappé on the pitch, the Brazilian took full control of the attack and was unstoppable, so much so that Real Sociedad had to physically take him down inside the box to thwart his advances.
• Dani Carvajal’s time in a white shirt could be coming to an end. There is simply no way the veteran beats out a healthy Trent Alexander-Arnold, and he does not seem content to only feature off the bench in already-decided games.

---

The Numbers That Explain Real Madrid’s Electrifying Win

Federico Valverde put together a great game in the middle of the park. | Burak Akbulut/Anadolu/Getty Images

• Real Madrid erased any careless mistakes on the ball and were tidy in possession, especially in the middle of the park. The hosts finished the game with a 91% pass accuracy and 533 completed passes.
• Arbeloa’s men managed a 3.10 xG and found the back of the net four times against a team that had not conceded more than two goals since November.
• Real Sociedad might have sent 13 shots the way of Thibaut Courtois, but only three were on target. Real Madrid’s defense did a great job of forcing the visitors into rushed, inaccurate strikes, born out of frustration.

Statistic	Real Madrid	Real Sociedad
Possession	52%	48%
Expected Goals (xG)	3.10	1.67
Total Shots	11	13
Shots on Target	5	3
Big Chances	5	2
Pass Accuracy	91%	91%
Fouls	10	9
Corners	4	6

---