Mourinho's symphony: Real Madrid stars shine in the Bernabéu sky
Real Madrid cruised past Malaga 4-0 at the Santiago Bernabeu in the third round of La Liga.
The win took Los Blancos to nine points and, for now, top of the table, pending the outcome of Barcelona's clash with Rayo Vallecano.
The AS newspaper rated Real Madrid's players from the Malaga clash as follows:
Courtois: Malaga reached the Real Madrid goal twice in the first half, but both efforts drifted well wide and never troubled him.
He dealt calmly with the one shot he faced and kept his first clean sheet of the season.
Trent Alexander-Arnold: The competition with Dumfries clearly sharpened him on his first start. He was one of the standouts of the opening half, and the game's first chance fell his way, a difficult effort that flashed just past the post.
He then teed up the third goal for Kylian Mbappe, showing far more strength and drive than he managed throughout his first season.
Antonio Rudiger: Solid and assured on his first league start, though Malaga rarely put Real Madrid's defenders under any real pressure.
Cucurella fires up the Bernabéu crowd
Huijsen: He continues along the same path he began the season with in the league. Extremely solid at the back, he kept his concentration throughout and showed more strength and sharpness in the challenges.
Cucurella: The fans were eager to see him, and he did not disappoint on his first start. He linked up with Vinícius on the left flank, where the pair posed a real threat.
Defensively he showed his full range too, winning back the ball through sheer strength and drive to ignite the enthusiasm of the Bernabéu crowd.
Camavinga: He delivered a superb first half, strong and intense in regaining possession, and Real Madrid's third goal started from his feet after a wonderful pass split Málaga's lines.
There were moments when he looked hesitant, drawing murmurs from the stands, but overall he put in a good shift in midfield.
Fede Valverde: He gave the team control and balance. It was not the most spectacular match by the Uruguayan, yet he controlled the tempo and formed a reliable pairing with Camavinga.
Brahim Díaz: He was not heavily involved in the play, but, like Vinícius Júnior, he showed a great deal of defensive commitment. Late in the first half, he set off with the ball from his own half on an individual run that earned the applause of the crowd.
Bellingham shines: Vinicius shows great defensive commitment
Jude Bellingham: Real Madrid's leader, and it shows. He is in superb physical condition, and it was Bellingham who opened the scoring, running from outside the box and dribbling past a string of opponents.
Six minutes later, he pounced on a rebound off the Malaga goalkeeper following an Mbappe shot and tried to head it home. A defender managed to clear the ball, but it cannoned off the goalkeeper and rolled into the net, putting Real Madrid 2-0 up.
Bellingham nearly grabbed his second at the start of the second half, only to see his shot strike the post.
Vinicius Junior: The least inspired of the attackers in the first half, yet he showed great defensive commitment, covering behind Cucurella on several occasions.
Time and again he tried in the second half, but his final pass was wildly imprecise. In the end, after all those attempts, he handed Guler a gift for the goal.
Mbappe: When he hits top speed, no one can stop him. He pressed with real energy and created almost every Real Madrid threat, save for Bellingham's.
His goal came after a precise pass from Arnold, finished off with the ease only the best players possess. That takes his tally to 4 goals this season, keeping him top of the competition's scoring charts.
Diomande: Flashes of his potential, and he came close to setting up Mbappe with the last chance of the match.
Bernardo Silva: He kept the team ticking over as they played the ball out from the back.
Guler: He scored the final goal after a wonderful, decisive pass from Vinicius Junior.
