Barcelona 1-1 Real Madrid: Player Ratings

6.5. Ter Stegen made some decent saves when Madrid were challenging early on, but had little to do for much of the second half. Unfortunately got just a slight hand to Ramos’ equalizing header, and perhaps could have done better, but you can’t blame the keeper for a free header going in. Poor marking isn’t on Ter Stegen.. GK. Barcelona. MARC ANDRE TER STEGEN

SERGI ROBERTO. 6. Roberto provides a little more than Aleix Vidal, but it is clear, especially against good opposition, that he is not a natural fullback. He fared fine against Cristiano Ronaldo, and can’t be faulted for anything defensively, but Barcelona aren’t getting the full attacking contribution they require from him. January must get here soon, and it must come with a right back.. RB. Barcelona

Mascherano nearly had a catastrophe on his hands early with a possible penalty offense, but escaped the call, and performed well the rest of the match. He tends to be the less stable of the pairing with Gerard Pique, but he was very solid against some of the world’s best attackers.. CB. Barcelona. JAVIER MASCHERANO. 7

7.5. Pique was imperious as always, and thwarted some big danger in the first half. When Barcelona controlled much of the second frame, Pique was involved in the build-up, threading passes from the back. Unfortunate to see the match end in a draw after a good defensive performance.. CB. Barcelona. GERARD PIQUE

6.5. Slightly better than Roberto, but Alba didn’t look his usual self. He contributed some to the attack, but was making sure of his defensive duties. It would make sense if he was up against Gareth Bale on that flank, but against Lucas Vazquez, you’d expect the Spaniard to get forward more.. LB. Barcelona. JORDI ALBA

Barcelona. SERGIO BUSQUETS. 8.5 (MOTM). Busquets is usually a silent contributor, but was shining bright today. Everything went through him in the midfield, and he was a big part of why Barcelona controlled most of the second half. He completed 93 percent of his passes, and made everything tick. It was a good performance from the Spaniard.. CDM

CM. Barcelona. ANDRE GOMES. 7. This was one of Gomes’ best performances in a Barca shirt. Controversially picked over Andres Iniesta, the Portuguese international justified Luis Enrique’s selection by passing the ball well and displaying some impressive touches. Unfortunately lacked some cutting edge closer to goal, but he was overall one of Barcelona’s better players on the day.

Rakitic did what he always does, and did it well. I’m not sure if injury forced him off or if Enrique just wanted more guile going forward when he introduced Iniesta for the Croatian after an hour, but it wasn’t because Rakitic was playing poorly. He didn’t make any overly influential impacts, but was solid on the day.. CM. Barcelona. IVAN RAKITIC. 6

5.5. Messi was lacking something out there. He usually shows up in El Clasico, and provides scintillating performances like we’re used to, but he just didn’t have the magic today. Other than a free kick early on that went right at Madrid’s keeper Navas, Messi didn’t trouble the visitors’ goal until late, when he took a brilliant Iniesta through ball down well, but pulled the shot wide. It was an unusually ineffective day.. RW. Barcelona. LIONEL MESSI

ST. Barcelona. LUIS SUAREZ. 7.5. He scored what looked like the winner for quite some time, and was quite lively up front. He was showing the usual Suarez frustration thanks to physical marking from Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane, but managed to slip away for his headed goal. Though he wasn’t overly involved, he gets a high rating because he came up in that big spot, and had Barcelona poised for three points.

Barcelona. NEYMAR . 7. Neymar was the more lively of attackers compared to Suarez and Messi, but he also lacked some sort of cutting edge. Like Suarez, he was being abused physically, something Zinedine Zidane likely preached to his players beforehand, because it worked well. Neymar wasn’t at his best, and had a chance to put the game away clear on goal, but blasted his shot well over from about six yards out. Has to be better.. LW

7.5. Tempted to give him man of the match! He might have been if Messi had finished on that through ball, but, nonetheless, Iniesta’s introduction injected live into Barcelona, and they looked like they would run away with it. The draw is not his fault, and though it’s not the best result, it is a positive to have the no. 8 back.. CM. Barcelona. ANDRES INIESTA (RAKITIC, '60)

Barcelona. ARDA TURAN (GOMES, 78'). N/A. Turan came on to aid in possession and put the game to bed, and wasn’t overly involved in 15-or-so minutes on the pitch.. CM

DENIS SUAREZ (NEYMAR, 87'). N/A. Floated in the free kick that nearly resulted in a goal in the waning seconds, but otherwise didn’t have enough time to make a difference.. CM. Barcelona

Manager. Barcelona. LUIS ENRIQUE. 8. It was a genuinely good coaching performance from Enrique, one that deserved three points. Whether the marking falls on him or on the players, Enrique took a gamble by starting Gomes, and it worked. He took a gamble by putting Iniesta on after 60 minutes, but Barcelona immediately looked better. Enrique has made some head-scratching decisions in the past, but didn’t make many on this day. He, like many of the players, is unfortunate to not get the win.