Courtois: He saved two chances in the first half, although only one was valid. Both shots from Cavani, who was offside on the second occasion; but even so, there was the Belgian to deny him the goal. Little to do at 1-1, he was sold with Lino practically finishing off a meter from him. He lived the rest of the game in relative tranquility; Valencia dominated, but without arrival. Until in the second part of extra time, Fran Pérez stood up to him and had to appear again, clearing with his body what was 1-2, which would have left Madrid on the canvas. And as a tip, he saved Gayá’s final penalty in the shootout, sealing the pass to the final. He took the MVP of the match.
Lucas Vazquez: It was difficult for him to deepen in the first part, he had to be attentive to the ascents of Gayá and Samuel Lino. He couldn’t have started the second part worse: he fell asleep on the mark and Lino slipped on his back to equalize. And to top it off, in a later play he hurt his knee after falling in a spectacular way and had to be replaced by Carvajal at 68′.
military: suffering a bit in the race when Madrid went on the attack, Cavani and Kluivert gave work in the first part. A spectacular pass was pulled out of the hat for Benzema, which then caused the penalty that ended in 1-0. White’s first chance was his header that went high. He cleared a dangerous shot with his head, leaving him somewhat dazed and paralyzing the game for a few seconds. He was able to continue, but 20 minutes later he felt disoriented and was replaced by Mendy, at 74′.
rudiger: Like Militao, with some problems running backwards in the first half and also overlooked, against an expert finisher like Cavani. In the second part he tried to join the attack a little more at first, but Valencia sank Madrid in their area and he had to keep more position. Quite a few problems getting the ball played, it’s not his forte.
Nacho: on the left it is very difficult for him to go deep in attack, especially with Vinicius as a companion; the Brazilian monopolizes the game when the lime. In defense, he had run-ins with Lato and Cavani gave him problems with aerial balls, but Courtois appeared there to solve them. He almost made it 2-1 with a header from a corner; he lacked centimeters to find the goal.
valverde: good first part of the Uruguayan, with a lot of travel and work, and also arriving. He filtered a perfect ball for Rodrygo that the Brazilian couldn’t take advantage of and then he looked at the goal with a whiplash from the front that went inches from the post. In the second half, with Madrid grogui, he brought the team out of torpor with an internship and subsequent cross that Benzema almost made it 2-1. He tried to avoid extra time with a shot from the edge that went somewhat centered. He also appeared to prevent Valencia’s potential 1-2 draw, snatching a ball from Fran Pérez when he was preparing to shoot or give the final pass, almost in the small area. Exhausted, he gave way to Ceballos at 106 ′.
Kroos: very well with the ball in the first half, oxygenating the white game. But suffering without possession, as usually happens when he has to play Tchouameni. It is not in the genetics of the German to keep the position and Valencia took advantage of it to start the race more than once. In the second half he lost control of the ball and Madrid noticed it. He was able to put Madrid ahead in extra time with a shot from the edge that Mamardashvili once again repelled. He scored his penalty of the shootout.
camavinga: Revolutionized in the first part, he saw a somewhat absurd yellow that conditioned him and then he released a stomp that could cost him the second; Ancelotti saw it clearly and withdrew him at half-time to bring on Modric. He energizes the game in the middle, but he lacks knowing how to measure himself. Party to get an apprenticeship.
Rodrygo: He had the first great chance for the Whites after a terrific pass from Valverde, but the fuel did not reach him in the race and his shot went wide. The rest of the first part was not much, and the same trend in the second, until Ancelotti withdrew him at 84′ to give Asensio a start.
Benzema: Good first part, constantly going down to receive and exchanging positions with Vinicius to create spaces. He made it 1-0 on his own: good clearance against Militao’s long pass and Cömert’s penalty, which he converted by deceiving Mamardashvili. After the 1-1, he cooked up a good play, but did not shoot when he touched and missed the opportunity. In the second half he was able to avoid extra time with a header from Valverde’s cross that would have made it 2-1; he went high. He went down with the passing of the minutes; he is still not 100% and it shows. He scored his penalty in the shootout, which is always difficult after having already taken one in the game.
Vinicius: without much success in the first half, it was difficult for him to overwhelm Thierry until he succeeded with one of his classic tricks, but then it got dark, with hardly any angle. With the passing of the minutes and seeing that things were not working out for him, he got into useless battles and arbitration claims that do him no good. And yet, he had 2-1 on his feet and avoid overtime: one-on-one, Mamardashvili narrowed the gap. At the start of extra time he had it again, this time with a shot placed from the edge before which Mamardashvili also stopped him with a stretch to the limit.
Modric: Camavinga entered at minute 46 to maintain an advantage that barely lasted seconds, as Lino scored as soon as the second half began. It was difficult for him to adapt to the rhythm of the game and he also experienced the worst minutes in Madrid, dominated by Valencia. Neither did he help to get him out of lethargy, he was somewhat slow to distribute. He scored his penalty of the shootout.
carvajal: entered at 68′ for the injured Lucas Vázquez. He was being reserved for the final, as he was coming off a minor injury, but the script forced him to play. He gave a lot of depth on the right, with Asensio focusing his position a lot and leaving him the lane to go up as much as he wanted.
Mendy: He entered at 74′ for Militao, disoriented after the hit he had received 20 minutes earlier. He did not train in the previous one due to a muscular overload, but circumstances forced him to play. Good in defense and little in attack, the usual thing for him.
Asensio: entered at 84′ for Rodrygo. Ancelotti saw, with Madrid stuck, that his powerful left-footed shots could be the solution. He did not frequent the band too much and focused his position a lot to try the shot, without luck. He scored his penalty in the shootout.
ceballos: He entered at 106 ‘for an exhausted Valverde. He did not clash.