Real Madrid vs Man City PLAYER RATINGS: Who was a complete passenger at the Bernabeu? Which of Pep Guardiola’s defenders was taught a lesson? And who was a real menace?

Manchester City’s hopes of reaching the quarter-finals of the Champions League are hanging by a thread after this bruising night in Madrid.

Fede Valverde delivered three heavy blows to Pep Guardiola’s side in a 42-minute first half hat-trick that leaves the Premier League side with a mountain to climb to come back from 3-0 down in next week’s second leg.

City were careless with the ball and they were a touch fortunate that the tie wasn’t all-but over when Vinicius Jnr fluffed his lines from the penalty spot, denied by Gianluigi Donnarumma.

Daily Mail Sport’s NATHAN SALT rates the two sides on a damaging night for City and Guardiola at the Santiago Bernabeu…

REAL MADRID (4-3-3)

Thibaut Courtois – 8

Is so much more than a shot stopper and that was on full display when he made one of the passes of the night to set Valverde away for the opening goal. Made one save in 45 minutes and while he had a bit more to do in the second – including a stunning reflex save to deny Nico O’Reilly – this was a confident display that saw him barely break a sweat.

Trent Alexander-Arnold – 5.5

Was seeing stars in the opening stages as he got turned inside and out by Jeremy Doku just days on from the Spanish press eviscerating his defending against Celta Vigo. Owed plenty to the engine of Fede Valverde who kept coming back to help double up.

Dean Huijsen – 6

Not had it all his own way since swapping AFC Bournemouth for Real Madrid but he is growing with every game and this was a solid outing at the back. Was part of a resolute defensive effort that nullified City’s gaggle of attackers to very, very little.

Antonio Rudiger – 7

Relished the battle with Erling Haaland and is one of those defenders that actually loves to defend. Cleared his lines when his side looked on the ropes in the opening exchanges and then maintained the clean sheet with a goal-saving clearance 68 minutes in which he celebrated like a goal. A great leader for this side.

Ferland Mendy – 7

Had to stay disciplined with a speedster like Savinho his match-up on the night. Showed plenty of defensive discipline and limited City’s Brazilian winger to very little in terms of quality production down that side. Lack of minutes of late meant he could only get through 45 minutes.

Fede Valverde – 9

First half hat-trick blew Manchester City away in a career-best display. Tireless in his defensive work to cover up Alexander-Arnold’s mistakes and world class in his decision-making at the other end with three exquisite goals. Reminded plenty of people just why he is seen as one of the most complete footballers in all of Europe. MOTM.

Aurelien Tchouameni – 7.5

Won’t get much easier halves of football than the first one here when the Manchester City midfield was effectively non-existent. Real Madrid’s injury list is long and when he went down needing treatment there was a collective intake of breath. Fact he got through the 90 minutes and ran the midfield for most of it, was an enormous boost for all of a Madrid persuasion.

Thiago Pitarch – 6.5

Showed a great deal of poise given the magnitude of the game and the fact he is still a teenager at just 18 years old. So easy to get overwhelmed in games like this but Pitarch didn’t. Covered a lot of ground, rather than dictated things on the ball, but everyone has a role to play.

Brahim Diaz – 7

Started off a bit too amped up as he kept gesturing to the crowd to make more noise. Once he and his team-mates settled down his quality shone through and his clipped pass over the top for Valverde’s third goal was delicious.

Vinicius Jnr – 6

Produced a dreadfully weak penalty which was well saved by Donnarumma but he was a constant menace on the counter-attack. Will be ruing the missed opportunity to deliver the knockout blow. 

Arda Guler – 6

Won’t win many headlines for this outing but he worked hard and didn’t make any mistakes that cost his side as so many on the opposite side did. Has had to be patient in his Real Madrid career to be trusted in big games but he absolutely looked part of the furniture here.

MANAGER – Alvaro Arbeloa – 8

Has been under immense pressure since taking charge, not least with four defeats already to his name. Arbeloa has been waiting for that ‘statement’ win and he got it here by outfoxing the genius that is Pep Guardiola. A huge boost for his long-term prospects at the Bernabeu.

SUBS

Fran Garcia (for Ferland Mendy, 46) – 6.5

Eduardo Camavinga (for Arda Guler, 70) – 6.5

Manuel Angel (for Thiago Pitarch, 76) – 6

Franco Mastantuono (for Brahim Diaz) – 6 

MANCHESTER CITY (4-1-3-2)

Gianluigi Donnarumma – 5.5

Not helped by his defenders but given his world class quality, his decision making on the night left plenty to be desired. Seemed to not be aware he was in his area when he pulled his hand away from touching it in the lead up to the first goal, then clumsily brought down Vinicius for a penalty. Saved that spot-kick though, so deserves credit for that. Booked.

Abdukodir Khusanov – 5

Had a nightmare previously at the Bernabeu when he got ran ragged. Real Madrid didn’t expose him in quite the same way this time but this was another outing where he seemed to be chasing shadows. Bailed out by his goalkeeper’s penalty save when it was he who carelessly gave the ball away for Real to counter for a fourth goal.

Ruben Dias – 5

Has bags of experience but when City were reeling the most here, he could not be the calming influence his newly-assembled back-line was crying out for.

Marc Guehi – 4

A very, very difficult night on his Champions League debut. Real Madrid attacked at will down the side featuring Guehi and O’Reilly and got away with whatever they wanted to. The third goal came down to desire and Valverde showed more of it to beat Guehi to the ball before finishing. Won’t look back on his Champions League debut with any fondness.

Nico O’Reilly – 4

Got taught a lesson by Valverde, who evaded O’Reilly at will in a galling first half for City and the youngster in particular. Never got to grips with the game’s key man and was made to pay. Often found himself pushing in to midfield to be an extra body but made little difference.

Rodri – 6

While City’s midfield got mauled, the former Ballon d’Or winner, across the 90 minutes, did at least try to shift momentum. But given the accolades that has previously come his way, expectation remains sky high and it was galling in that first half just how easy Rodri and Bernardo Silva were to play through.

Savinho – 5

Didn’t create a single chance, complete a successful dribble, and was kept in check by the more dominant Ferland Mendy. Was inevitable when he was hooked at half-time by Pep Guardiola.

Bernardo Silva – 5

One of Guardiola’s most trusted lieutenants but it was difficult to come away from this and think Silva had any positive impact on the contest from a City perspective. Was too easily beaten in his duels and wasn’t progressive in the rare instances he was able to get on the ball. Way below his usual standards.

Jeremy Doku – 7

Deserved more from his team-mates than he got. Given his quality and ability to go on the outside of his marker, it made it more and more puzzling with every successful dribble that no City player gambled at the back post for Doku’s low crosses into dangerous areas. On another day he gets an assist or two in the opening quarter where City were the better team and the complexion of the match looks a lot different.

Antoine Semenyo – 6

Looked like he was on a slip-n-slide for far too long in this one given the promising positions he continued to pick up. Didn’t look intimidated in his Champions League debut but needs to invest in boots that keep him on his feet. Marginally brighter when moved out to the right in the second half.

Erling Haaland – 4

Walked off with 10 touches to his name, one touch in the Real Madrid area, zero chances created and zero shots. He’s a generational talent, unquestionably, but even he cannot produce that magic when he doesn’t get the ball. A complete passenger in the Spanish capital.

MANAGER: Pep Guardiola – 4

Got accused by City fans of overthinking when the line-up dropped and after Real Madrid scored the first goal and two more followed with almost zero midfield resistance, it was genuinely intriguing what Guardiola was actually thinking. No amount of substitutions could fix the damage in the first half.  

SUBS

Tijjani Reijnders (for Savinho, 46) – 6.5

Rayan Cherki (for Antoine Semenyo, 70) – 7

Rayan Ait-Nouri (for Bernardo Silva, 70) – 6 

Omar Marmoush (for Erling Haaland, 82)