Tracking Performances of Real Madrid, Barcelona Stars After Weekend Nov. 22-23
Another weekend has passed by in La Liga, with Barcelona and Real Madrid both picking up victories in their first match back in domestic action after the international break.
We continue our weekly round-up of the performances of their biggest stars by taking in the stats and talking points from game week 12. Real Madrid beat Eibar 4-0, while Barcelona won 5-1 at home to Sevilla on an historic afternoon.
Real 14-Up
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Real's win wasn't just another routine victory, but also a measure of the immense consistency they have mustered over the past couple of months: it was their 14th straight win in all competitions. It was also their third clean sheet in their last five league games.
All three superstars started: Cristiano Ronaldo on the left and in attack, Gareth Bale on the right and James Rodriguez central to begin with, but putting in plenty of game time on the left of midfield too.
The 4-0 win saw each of the goals either scored or created by two of our focus three, with Ronaldo once more the stand-out. He provided two crosses for a controversial opening goal; firstly Karim Benzema was offside when the initial ball came to him, then when the Frenchman messed up his attempt and the ball rebounded back to Ronaldo, the Portuguese forward was off. Neither were given and his looped second cross was headed in at the back post by James Rodriguez.
"Goal JAMES Rodriguez http://t.co/QjcVzfdbdQ
— Football Vines (@FootballVines) November 22, 2014"
Ronaldo himself bounced the ball into the ground and past the keeper for the second goal; not the cleanest strike he'll ever hit, but certainly one which swung the game from a match Real were on top but not dominant in, to a game they were inevitably going to take three points from.
James showed good endeavour and awareness to set up the third strike, before a Ronaldo penalty ended the scoring.
Out of the trio, winger Gareth Bale was by far the quietest. He didn't really pick up the tempo of the game, wasn't involved enough to warrant being picked ahead of Isco or James if a future return to 4-4-2 was on the cards and never really got beyond his full-back marker.
An ultimately easy win for Real, and one which two of our watched stars contributed to heavily.
Ratings: Cristiano Ronaldo, 9/10. James Rodriguez, 8/10. Gareth Bale, 6/10.
Barcelona's Record Breaker
Luis Enrique really needed a positive result for Barcelona here and he certainly got one, with the Catalan side eventually putting Sevilla in their place with a crushing home win.
The front three for Barça was our featured trio: Luis Suarez, Neymar and Lionel Messi, with whom we start our focus.
A great 90 minutes from the Argentine saw him equal and then smash, at long last, La Liga's all-time goalscoring record. He went on to fittingly complete his hat-trick in the game after a curled free-kick, a determined dribble and slide in at the far post and a one-two with a low drive into the bottom corner.
"This is how Barca celebrated Messi’s record-breaking goal http://t.co/90kSnIhMQS https://t.co/KQJto2SgYM
— SB Nation Soccer (@SBNationSoccer) November 22, 2014"
Throughout the match Messi looked far more alert and alive to attacking possibilities than he had in games just prior to the international break, beating men in deep areas of the pitch and looking to either make ground toward the penalty box or play in those ahead of him.
Suarez started in a central role but was frequently seen to pull out wide to the right, making space for others to dart into and once more providing examples of his selflessness and awareness of team-mates. A chipped cross to Ivan Rakitic saw Suarez claim yet another assist and, though he has yet to score for his new side, he was once more a valuable part of the victory.
Neymar put in a great all-round display, far better than in other games when he has simply gotten his name on the scoresheet and offered little else. Here he was an outlet for his team, a link man to allow Messi to flourish and he gave his direct opponent Coke an absolute nightmare of a game when the Brazilian got in possession and in space to run.
A well-rounded Barcelona win in the second half and the front three were central to it all.
Player ratings: Lionel Messi, 10/10. Neymar, 9/10. Luis Suarez, 8/10.
Matchday Stats Comparison
| James | 77 | 73 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Bale | 90 | 36 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Ronaldo | 83 | 64 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Suarez | 72 | 43 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| Messi | 90 | 100 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 3 | 0 |
| Neymar | 90 | 73 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
Season Stats Comparison
| Messi | 12 | 10 | 108 | 7 | 2.9 | 4.8 | 4.1 |
| Suarez | 3 (1) | 0 | n/a | 4 | 3.3 | 1.5 | 2.3 |
| Neymar | 8 (3) | 11 | 67 | 3 | 0.9 | 3.4 | 1.8 |
| Ronaldo | 11 | 20 | 49 | 6 | 2.9 | 6.1 | 2.1 |
| Bale | 9 | 5 | 155 | 3 | 1.2 | 3.1 | 1.4 |
| James | 12 | 5 | 201 | 5 | 2.4 | 2.4 | 0.8 |
