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No Gareth Bale and no Karim Benzema saw Javier Hernandez - the on-loan Manchester United striker - given a chance in this Champions League quarter-final second-leg.
And Carlo Ancelotti will be delighted he gave him it after the Mexican scored the winner for Real Madrid in their match against Atletico Madrid at the Bernabeu.
Due to the injury problems, Real Madrid lined up a little differently, with Sergio Ramos playing in midfield.
As expected it was a physical and frenetic contest which was impossible to call. But when Arda Turan was shown a second yellow card with 15 minutes to play, it was advantage to Real Madrid and they made it pay when Chicharito scored the winner in the 88th minute.
See how the individual players performed below.
Show all 22 1 /22Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings REAL MADRID: Iker Casilla Got his team moving quickly whenever he had the ball in his hands, but didn't always look convincing and came unnecessarily. 5
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Dani Carvajal Had some driving runs from his position at right-back although gave the ball away occasionally. 6
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Raphael Varane Dealt well with balls played into Mandzukic and posed a threat from set-pieces at the other end. 6
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Pepe Dealt well under pressure. Booked. 5
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Fabio Coentrao Well involved down the left, offering an outlet when Ronaldo drifted inside. 6
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Sergio Ramos Deployed in midfield to add some bite and provided just that, as well as a danger when he got further up field. Displayed the usual histrionics. 7
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Toni Kroos A busy performance in midfield, although struggled to find many telling passes in amongst a packed Atletico Madrid rearguard. 6
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Isco A great through-ball for Hernandez and a decent penalty claim from the Spaniard in an impressive display. 6
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings James Rodriguez Played an excellent one-two with Ronaldo in the build up to Hernandez's goal and generally made himself useful. 7
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Cristiano Ronaldo Not vintage Ronaldo but was still a thorn in Atletico Madrid's side throughout. A trademark awkward dipping long-range free-kick troubled Oblak. 7
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Javier Hernandez Wasted a decent chance early on, hitting the side netting. Also missed another couple of opportunities. But those were all forgotten when he kept his head to score the winning goal. 6
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Jan Oblak Did well to parry a Ronaldo free-kick round the post and made a crucial save when Hernandez looked set to score. Was strong on crosses too. 6
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Juanfran Poor communication with his keeper led to an unnecessary corner late on. Dangerously close to giving away a penalty for a coming together with Isco. But in general dealt well with repelling Real Madrid. 6
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Diego Godin Won a number of important aerial duels. 6
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Miranda Sailed close to the wind throughout, clattering into Hernandez before making a cycnical block on the Mexican. Lucky not to be booked. 5
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Jesus Gamez Stole the ball in midfield and forced Casillas into a save during the first period to add some colour to a quietly efficient performance at left-back. 6
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Tiago Found himself overrun at times in midfield. 5
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Saul Niguez Failed to make much impact and it came of little suprise to see him replaced by Gabi at half-time. 4
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Antoine Griezmann Often playing so far back he was more like an extra defender than a striker. No shortage of effort before being replaced with Raul Garcia after 65 minutes. 5
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Koke Could have done better with headed chance. Booked late on. 6
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Arda Turan His red card may have turned the match, but his second booking was undeserved. Kept close to Ronaldo when he could. 5
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Real Madrid 1 Atletico Madrid 0 - player ratings Mario Mandzukic Couldn't get into the game early on. Grew as the match went on but still had little service to feed off. 5
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