Another trophy for the collection!
Real Madrid won 2-0 in the UEFA Super Cup against Eintracht Frankfurt to add another piece of European silverware to their cabinet after claiming the Champions League final in May.
Carlo Ancelotti picked a veteran starting XI for the fixture in Helsinki, leaving young French midfielders Eduardo Camavinga and Aurelien Tchouameni out of his line-up in favour of the battle-tested trio Luka Modric, Casemiro and Toni Kroos. He also kept new centre-back Antonio Rudiger on the bench.
The manager’s old guard were the catalysts in the victory: Alaba and Benzema scored, while Casemiro might have been the best player on the pitch. If it’s not broken, don’t try to fix it.
The Blancos now start their La Liga title defence and will eye another Champions League crown, having little reason to doubt that they can run it all back again.
Getty ImagesThe Winners
David Alaba
OK, his goal was a tap-in set up by Karim Benzema and Casemiro winning consecutive headers from a corner. Can’t give him too much credit there.
But his solid all-round effort, which included brilliant distribution from the back with his sweet left foot, will make it difficult for Ancelotti to justify dropping him for Rudiger. There are very few centre-backs in the world who can pull off the over-the-top passes he completed on Wednesday. He’s a breaker of defences in a team that already boasts world-class passers Kroos and Modric, making the Blancos so difficult to slow down.
Alaba has been a hit at Real Madrid since joining on a free transfer last summer. His effect goes beyond the pitch – perhaps his most memorable moment to date came from the bench, chair inexplicably in hand.
Now in his second campaign, he can grow his hero status at the Santiago Bernabeu even further.
Casemiro
Brilliant performance from the Brazilian in all facets of the game. He defended well, passed well and was more aggressive in attack than usual.
Every champion needs a player like Casemiro to succeed. The club's promising young midfielders would do well to follow his lead.
Karim Benzema
The striker is somehow still in the goalscoring form of his life. It's unbelievable. Again, he wasn't always super involved in build-up play, but when the ball is near him in the box it's usually over for the opposition. He scored Real Madrid's second to put the match beyond Frankfurt, capitalising on a nice pass from Vinicius Junior.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesThe Losers
Antonio Rudiger
Unfair to call anyone a loser in a winning effort like this, but Rudiger will be disappointed at not making the starting line-up in a potential indication of Real Madrid's pecking order to begin the season. There's still plenty of time, of course, but he didn't come to Spain to sit on the bench.
Kevin Trapp
Frankfurt's goalkeeper was caught in a bad position on Alaba's opener into an uncontested net, and despite a couple of nice saves otherwise, he may be a bit frustrated with himself.
Getty ImagesReal Madrid Ratings: Defence
Thibaut Courtois (7/10):
Courtois made a key early save to prevent Real Madrid from falling behind, and in general, he looked every bit of the presence that helped win the Champions League last year.
Ferland Mendy (6/10):
Nothing special here in defence or going forward, but there's little competition at left-back right now, so Mendy isn't at any risk.
Eder Militao (7/10):
He didn't get the goal his centre-back partner did, but he did what was required to contribute to the clean sheet.
David Alaba (7/10):
One of our winners, it was an elite showing from the Austria international.
Dani Carvajal (6/10):
Like Mendy, Carvajal was a quiet figure for the Blancos against a Frankfurt squad that never tested him too much.
Getty ImagesMidfield
Luka Modric (6/10):
The first man substituted, Modric was relatively anonymous compared to his peers. Did little wrong, though.
Casemiro (8/10):
It's a huge boost when Casemiro gives Real Madrid production beyond destroying opposition attacks in the defensive midfield. He did his usual dirty work against Frankfurt but also assisted Alaba and hit the bar with an adventurous left-footed effort from outside the box. Probably the best overall performance of anyone on the pitch.
Toni Kroos (7/10):
Kroos led the team in key passes played (three). The German was the possession hub of the midfield, and he remains one of football's most brilliant on-field minds.