Player Ratings: Real Madrid 3-0 Almeria

Real Madrid:

Iker Casillas 6.5 - Pulled off a decent first half stop to deny Mane, but other than that was a virtual spectator as Almeria could not create chances.

Sergio Ramos 6.5 – Was given a tricky afternoon by Albert Crusat and the overlapping Mane, and was booked for a wild lunge on the former at the start of the second half.

Gabriel Heinze 6.5 – Almost grabbed a rare goal with a second-half header that was cleared off the line, and defended soundly before being replaced late on.

Fabio Cannavaro 7.0 – The Italian legend strolls through this kind of fixture in his sleep, and despite the best efforts of Uche, the World Cup winner never looked in any danger, dictating the action from defence.

Pepe 7.0 – Still yet to convince many with his displays, but he will have fewer more straightforward afternoons in defence than he managed today.

Lassana Diarra 6.5 – The former Chelsea midfielder was barely required to get involved in the action such was his sides’ comfort, particularly in the second period

Marcelo 8.0 – Broke the deadlock with a superb first half strike, and then almost doubled the advantage, smashing the ball against the crossbar in the second. Real Madrid’s best performer on the day, he was a constant danger.

Wesley Sneijder 7.5 – Performed better than he has in recent matches. Still has the tendency to blast wildly over the bar, but his delivery into the area was, in the main, a marked improvement, and his passing helped Robben create the third goal for Huntelaar.

Raul 6.5 – A rather passive performance from the legendary forward this afternoon, he always appeared to be on the periphery of the action, and didn’t really create a clear cut opening on goal.

Klaas-Jan Huntelaar 7.5 – Was relatively quiet until the 55th minute when he volleyed exquisitely into the roof of the net to wrap up the match and continue his own good run in front of goal, before showing striking instinct to add his second and Madrid's third.

Arjen Robben 7.0 – Should have scored before Huntelaar netted to make the score 3-0, and although the Dutchman was not at his most fluent, he did enough to give Almeria a difficult afternoon with his pace and skill.

Substitutions:

Christophe Metzelder 4.0 - Replaced Pepe late on  in defence.

Miguel Torres N/A

Almeria:

Diego Alves 6.5 – Made solid second-half stops from Marcelo and Robben, but in truth was helpless for all three Real Madrid goals.

Hernan Pellerano 6.0 – Like his central defensive partner, found Sneijder and Robben slipping through balls past him and was unable to get turned quick enough to make up the ground.

Santiago Acasiete 6.0 – Struggled to keep tabs on Robben and Sneijder drifting across the line and cutting through them, and was left exposed on a number of occasions by his midfield.

Mane 6.5 – Overlapped on the left whenever possible, and brought a good first half save from Casillas at his near post. Offered a positive attacking option for most of the match.

Bruno 6.0 – Tried manfully to nullify the threat of the ever-dangerous Robben, but the Dutchman skipped past him far too easily at times, putting his teammates on the back foot.

Santos Iriney 6.0 – Tried to open out the play and allow Almeria to attack from the wings, but defensively gave Madrid far too much time on the ball to get the danger men such as Robben into possession.

Juanito 5.5 – Gave Lassana Diarra far too easy an afternoon, never putting him under any pressure, and could not cope with the running of Wesley Sneijder, struggling to track him.

Albert Crusat 7.0 – Looked good in possession, running at the Madrid back four whenever possible and used his left foot to swing the ball into dangerous positions.

Juan Manuel Ortiz 6.5 – Had the chance to run at Heinze early on and swing in some dangerous crosses, but his influence waned and he eventually drifted out of the match.

Pablo Piatti 6.0 – Got up to support Uche on numerous occasions to make a front two, but didn’t see enough of the ball to have an impact on proceedings.

Kalu Uche 6.5 – The away sides’ biggest threat, Uche upset Pepe and Cannavaro with his physical presence, and did well deputising Alvaro Negredo who missed out through suspension.

Substitutions:

Jose Ortiz  4.5 - Replace Jose Manuel on the hour but by that point the game was over.

Miguel Angel Corona 4.0 - Took on the lone striking role from Uche but faced a thankless task.

Miguel Nieto N/A