Sevilla vs. Real Madrid Preview

After a crushing defeat at home to main rivals Barcelona, Real Madrid must now try and get back on track in Andalucía against a Sevilla side who are in the hunt for a Champions League berth.

Real were full of hope ahead of El Classico round one at the Santiago Bernabeu however yet again they could not cope with Barcelona’s slick style of football and ruthless cutting edge.

Trailblazing at the top of La Liga prior to the fixture, Jose Mourinho’s men were the team who looked the real deal in both Spain and the Champions League and went into the match as the bookies favourites. But once again, the ‘Special One’ was foiled by Pep Guardiola whose team are still clearly a class apart when hitting top gear.

The ‘bouncebackability’ factor will now be vital for Mourinho and Madrid moving into the Christmas period and they must instantly get back to winning ways unless risk surrendering their title chances by falling behind the Catalans.

Sevilla are far from an easy scalp however and Marcelino Garcia Toral’s men are an exceptionally sturdy outfit at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan stadium.

Building from the back, captain Andres Palop is a superb organisational goalkeeper who is crucial to the team’s solid foundations for attack. Fernando Navarro and Martin Caceres have formed a solid partnership at the heart of the defence and Jesus Navas keeps things ticking over in the midfield.

Usually, Sevilla enjoy a large percentage of possession at home however this match may be one of the rare occasions where they have to sit tight and be patient.

The hosts have a great deal of experience in their side and are unlikely to be overawed by their star studied opposition but they may be run off their feet if Madrid’s frontline start firing on all fronts.

Mourinho is a manager who demands the best and he is likely to be hell bent on recording a quick riposte after the important loss to Barcelona.

Cristiano Ronaldo will once again play a leading role and will be hoping to make an instant impact in order to open the game up and bring Sevilla onto the attack.

At around 4/9 generally, Real are given the chance of a strong favourite but their task may not be so straightforward if Sevilla prove hard to break down.

The longer the game wears on, the more comfortable Sevilla will get and it is not inconceivable that they could hold Real to a low scoring draw in what will be the weekend’s feature game. Although the contest essentially sees two positive, attacking teams facing off against each other, there is a strong chance that both outfits will cancel each other out and Real will certainly not be able to administer complete control over their opponents like they may be able to at home.

Real won both meetings between the teams last season but Sevilla have been handed a decent opportunity to buck that trend and at least share the spoils at a time when Mourinho’s team may be licking their wounds.

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12/12/2011     © Frixo 2024