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Following every round of LaLiga fixtures, Pulse Sports presents the most impressive performers of the matchday.
There were important wins for Valencia, who continue their bid to stave off relegation, and for Athletic Club, who are pushing for a European spot. Here are the eye-catching displays of the round.
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Goalkeeper
Jordi Masip (Real Valladolid)
Real Valladolid just about shaded the game against Girona on Saturday, but it was a close-run thing. In order for Monchu's winner to suffice though, they needed a tremendous performance from Jordi Masip in goal. The Barcelona youth product was superb for the second week running, saves from Ivan Martin and Cristhian Stuani – the latter deep in stoppage time – the picks of a very good bunch.
Defenders
Oscar De Marcos (Athletic Club)
An energetic, forward-thinking performance from Oscar De Marcos here, as Athletic produced a nerveless, composed performance at Estadio de los Juegos Mediterráneos. It wasn't simply that he got the winner, although he took his goal superbly; it was his sheer tenacity in the duel and his constant positivity that drove his side forward. He also completed three dribbles and progressed the ball into the final third six times.
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Cenk Ozcakar (Valencia)
One could simply whip out the word 'perfect' to describe Cenk Ozcakar's performance and it would not be overstating it. The on-loan 22-year-old has been one of the few bright spots in a wretched season for Valencia, and here he put just about foot right to help Los Che to an important result against bottom side Elche. Ozcakar was impassable on air and on the ground, and impeccable in his timing of the tackle.
Antonio Raillo (Real Mallorca)
Playing a back three leaves you with a defensive surfeit, so it's a good thing if one of your centre-backs can make an attacking impact. Antonio Raillo did just that, bagging a goal and an assist (a generous one, granted, seeing as Kang-In Lee ran close to the length of the pitch to finish); even more impressive, he did that without giving up too much in the defensive sector. The Real Mallorca man made five clearances and won nine duels.
Eduardo Camavinga (Real Madrid)
Are we sure Eduardo Camavinga is a noob in this position? It's worth asking because of just how natural he looks at left-back, filling in a need for the reigning European champions with the minimum of fuss. With hindsight, his combination of physicality, technical quality and ball-carrying make him a solid fit, but no one saw this coming. Against Celta, Camavinga won 12 duels and made 10 ball recoveries. Is he man or machine?
Midfielders
Lucas Robertone (Almeria)
Almeria may have been on the losing end against Athletic, but Lucas Robertone put in a solid shift at the base of midfield for the home side, even in defeat. The Argentine channelled all of the intensity that we come to associate with that great footballing nation, almost always first when the ball went loose and putting himself about to give his team a foothold even as the game threatened to run away from them.
Kang-In Lee (Real Mallorca)
The performance of Korea international Kang-In Lee was the textbook demonstration of the expression 'taking the game by the scruff of the neck'. He was unplayable at times in the second half, reacting quickest to pull Mallorca level, working a brilliant opening for himself soon after with a super dribbling run, before taking the ball inside his own half, crashing the distance between both boxes and slamming a finish past David Soria.
Oihan Sancet (Athletic Bilbao)
Not the best finishing performance from Oihan Sancet, but when you can pull the strings of a game and carve out chances like he can, you can be a difference-maker just the same. Just ask Almeria, who felt the force of the 22-year-old's creative ability. Sancet, playing just off the front line, was incisive and efficient, assisting both goals for the Lions. The second for De Marcos, in particular, featured an outrageous bit of skill.
Forwards
Marco Asensio (Real Madrid)
Marco Asensio is pretty much a dream player, able to contribute whether as a starter or as a substitute without bringing down the level of the team in any way. At this rate, he might be making a play for the starting spot on the right wing permanently – against Celta Vigo, the 27-year-old fired home his eighth league goal of the campaign to open the scoring, before sending over a corner for Eder Militao to head home.
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Ante Budimir (Osasuna)
Look, Ante Budimir isn't everyone's cup of tea. He's ungainly, a bit of a lump, in fact. But get him the ball in his natural habitat, and he can power them in with the best of them. Case in point: his second goal against Real Betis, which was as close to unsaveable as a header can be. The Croatia international had himself a good one against Los Verdiblancos, scoring twice and hitting the target with three of his five shots.
Vinicius Jr (Real Madrid)
When you're in the world-class bracket like Vinicius is, you don't even have to be right all the time to make a difference. There was a lot of inefficiency to his performance against Celta Vigo, but when he did get it right, it was decisive. His assist for Marco Asensio was testament to that, as was the fact that he still completed six dribbles and won 10 duels in the game. The best only need to be right once or twice.
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