Still flawless! Real Madrid winners, losers and ratings as Valverde & Vinicius Junior step up for absent Benzema in Champions League

Fede Valverde

The Uruguayan scored an absolute screamer last time out for Real Madrid and made the difference again on Wednesday night to snatch all three points.

The game looked to be heading for a goalless draw until the hosts finally managed to come up with a moment of real quality to break Leipzig hearts.

Vinicius Junior was the creator with a run and a wonderful ball for Valverde to fire a lethal low shot home and into the bottom corner.

It's the Uruguayan's first Champions League goal and means he's been involved in six goals in his last nine games. He really is in the form of his life right now.

Marco Asensio:

Asensio was actually whistled by supporters after coming on as a substitute just after the hour. Fans clearly weren't impressed with his angry outburst after being left on the bench last time out.

It looked like being another tough evening too with Asensio scooping a poor shot over the bar on a rare sight of goal.

Yet Asensio managed to turn the jeers to cheers in stoppage time. The substitute curled home Los Blancos' second for his 50th Real Madrid goal.

Carlo Ancelotti:

The Real Madrid manager hit a very special landmark against RB Leipzig, picking up his 100th Champions League win.

It's a very rare milestone that only Sir Alex Ferguson has achieved previously with Manchester United.

The win came on a night when Real Madrid did little to impress but showed again their incredible mentality by grinding out the three points.

Timo Werner:

Saw plenty of the ball against Real Madrid and looked to have the pace to trouble the home defence but never really looked like scoring.

The former Chelsea man has only netted once against top-flight opposition for RB Leipzig since returning in the summer transfer window and his goal drought continued at the Santiago Bernabeu.

The rest of Europe:

Real Madrid have dominated this competition in recent years and it might take something special to prize the trophy off Los Blancos this season too.

Ancelotti was again without Benzema and saw his team put in a pretty lacklustre performance against the Bundesliga side.

Yet the defending champions still had enough to claim victory and now top Group F by two points after two matches and are yet to concede a goal.

Eden Hazard:

The Belgian continues to find life tough at Real Madrid and didn't even make it off the bench against RB Leipzig on Wednesday night.

Ancelotti was without Benzema once more due to injury but overlooked Hazard, perhaps a result of the forward's underwhelming performance at the weekend.

Thibaut Courtois (7/10): Was one of Real Madrid’s busiest players, particularly in the first half, but kept out everything that came in his way.

Dani Carvajal (6/10): Had some tricky moments up against Timo Werner and Christopher Nkunku and found both players a handful.

Antonio Rudiger: (7/10): Solid in defence and went close with a header from a David Alaba free-kick in the second half. Great tackle to deny Werner late on.

Nacho (7/10): Captain for the night and will be happy with the clean sheet against spirited opponents.

David Alaba (6/10): Played at left-back against RB Leipzig and did a solid job for his team but didn't offer too much going forwards.

Eduardo Camavinga (5/10): Was on the fringes of the game and couldn’t get going. Looked lost for long periods of the game and was hooked just after the hour for Marco Asensio.

Aurelien Tchouameni (6/10): A pretty solid performance from the summer signing but Real Madrid will still want more. Won every single tackle and barely put a pass astray.

Luka Modric (7/10): Became the oldest outfield player to play in the European Cup for Real Madrid since Ferenc Puskas in 1965. Fired a shot just wide before half-time and wanted a penalty too but didn't receive the call.

Fede Valverde (8/10): A willing runner down the right and always looked the most likely source of a goal. Went close before his strike with a great run but finally broke the deadlock with an excellent finish.

Rodrygo (6/10): Had a few bright moments on the ball but far below what he’s shown in recent weeks for Real Madrid.

Vinicius Junior (7/10): The game was begging for a bit of quality and the Brazilian eventually delivered late on, teeing up Valverde to break the deadlock.

Marco Asensio (7/10): Replaced Camavinga after an hour and scored Madrid's second goal.

Toni Kroos (N/A): Was missed but only came on the final minutes.

Ferland Mendy (N/A): A late substitute for Alaba.

Dani Ceballos (N/A): Allowed Vinicius to have a breather at the end

Carlo Ancelotti (7/10): Not a memorable performance by Real Madrid but the perfect record remains intact and Ancelotti wrote his name into the history books with his 100th Champions League win.