Whoscored European Team of the Week: Real Madrid and Ronaldo Dominate Lineup

Cristiano Ronaldo is WhoScored.com’s European player of the week this week.

The Portugal international was in scintillating form for European champions Real Madrid in their 9-1 win over Granada, netting an incredible five times to take his tally for the season to 36 goals—more than any other player in Europe’s top five leagues this term.

With two key passes, two successful dribbles and two tackles in the rout at the Bernabeu, Ronaldo certainly deserved his WhoScored.com rating of 10 from the weekend.

Teammate Gareth Bale joins Ronaldo in the team on the opposite flank. The world’s most expensive player netted the opener over Granada, before turning provider, registering two assists, both of which were for Ronaldo goals.

Three key passes suggests the chances Bale created for his teammates were of the highest quality, while two successful dribbles indicate that Bale was difficult to contain during his 90 minutes on the pitch. Having been on the receiving end of some unfair criticism in recent weeks, Bale’s display against Granada went a long way to silencing his doubters.

Denis Doyle/Getty Images

James Rodríguez is the third Madrid player to feature in the midfield on account of his notable creative showing on Sunday. The Colombian played five key passes in the 9-1 win over Granada, two of which resulted in assists for Ronaldo and Karim Benzema, respectively. A 92.7 percent pass success rate from his 55 attempted passes prior to his withdrawal on the hour mark was also an impressive return from Rodríguez.

The 23-year-old’s start against Granada was his first since February and it’s no coincidence that Madrid looked a stronger offensive threat with Rodríguez back in the side.

Gonzalo Castro ensures it’s not an all-Madrid midfield this week following his 10-out-of-10 display for Bayer Leverkusen in their 4-0 home win over Hamburg. Castro had a hand in three of Leverkusen’s four goals, with one assist and two goals to his name.

No player has played more key passes in a single Bundesliga match this season than Castro managed against Hamburg (10), in what was a hugely influential performance from the German in the victory.

Whoscored

Karim Benzema is the fourth Madrid player to feature in the XI this week having bagged a brace for his side against Granada. The Frenchman had only three shots on target during his time on the pitch in Sunday’s romp, while two key passes and three successful dribbles contributed to his WhoScored.com rating of 10.

Modibo Maiga partners Benzema in attack after starring for Metz in their 3-2 home win over Toulouse on Saturday evening. The on-loan striker netted a hat trick to boost his side’s chances of staving off relegation, with each of his three shots on goal finding the back of the net. Four key passes and three aerial duels won was the ideal offensive showing from the lone frontman, which contributed to his WhoScored.com man-of-the-match award.

Ricardo Rodriguez stars at left-back after an impressive performance on Saturday. The Swiss defender was in fine from for Wolfsburg in their 3-1 win over VfB Stuttgart on Saturday afternoon, netting a brace to take his total for the season in the Bundesliga to six. Rodriguez needed just two shots on goal to net twice in the fixture, with the 22-year-old playing a pivotal role in the victory.

A majority of Wolfsburg’s attacks came down the left flank (42 percent), with Rodriguez crucial to their offensive efforts on this side of the pitch having played four key passes and completed four successful dribbles in the win. A further eight aerial duels won ensured any offensive aerial threat thrust his way was thwarted by the young left-back, who continues to excel under Dieter Hecking.

Michael Sohn/Associated Press

Tito stars at right-back after impressing for Rayo Vallecano at Eibar at the weekend. The 29-year-old provided the assist for Alberto Bueno’s first-half equaliser and was on hand to ensure his side came away from the Ipurua Municipal Stadium with a crucial three points. Defensively Tito excelled, making a clearance off the line in the final minutes to aid his side, while three tackles, four interceptions and three clearances helped him gain a WhoScored.com rating of 8.14.

La Liga counterpart Shkodran Mustafi features at centre-back this week after his performance against Villarreal on Sunday. The young German turned out a noteworthy defensive showing for Valencia in their 0-0 draw at the Mestalla. Mustafi’s four tackles, nine interceptions and 20 clearances ensured the Yellow Submarines mustered just one shot on target in the stalemate, with his display earning him the WhoScored.com man-of-the-match award.

Sylvain Armand partners Mustafi at the heart of the back line. The Rennes centre-back netted his side’s second goal in their 3-0 win at Lorient as Armand, like Mustafi, landed the man-of-the-match award. Two tackles, four interceptions and eight clearances contributed to a fine defensive performance from the experienced defender, which helped Les Rouges et Noirs come away with all three points.

Teammate Benoit Costil completes the European team of the week. While Rennes secured a 3-0 win, they still had their goalkeeper to thank, with Costil on hand to make eight saves over the 90 minutes.

Eleven accurate long balls helped his side instigate attacks from the back, as the 27-year-old kept his 13th clean sheet of the season at the Stade du Moustoir.

All statistics courtesy of WhoScored.com, where you can find yet more stats, including live in-game data and unique player and team ratings.

You can follow all the scores, statistics, live player and team ratings with the new free-to-download WhoScored iOS app.