What: Spanish La Liga
Who: Sevilla vs Real Madrid
When: Saturday 17th December, 2011, at 21:00 UK time
Where: Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, Seville, Spain
Time to Pounce
Will Sevilla make the best use of Real Madrid’s woes, or will the Liga giants return to the domestic race from Andalusia with a bang? This is the question that will be answered when the two sides meet in what is the pick of the round in Spain. Knowing that a Real Madrid win would grant Jose Mourinho’s side the league’s leadership, a tough test awaits Sevilla, even at home.
Los Rojiblancos have failed to keep pace with the Champions League placed clubs, picking up just 24 points after 15 rounds to Barcelona and Real Madrid’s 37. Scoring goals is a problem too, with only 16 to the club’s credit, less than 16th placed Rayo Vallecano.
The team have been plagued with an abysmal away record in the league so far, managing only a scrappy 1-0 win over relegation strugglers Real Zaragoza – a single victory in seven away outings.
Speaking after another disappointment, last weekend’s loss at Levante, forward Manu del Moral declared that a win against Los Merengues would be the perfect tonic for his team: “We will play against a big team. Everyone wants to make up for the last defeat, even though we think we produced a good performance. There is no better way to do that than against Real Madrid. We should not leave spaces, because they are very dangerous on the counter-attack”.
Still Barcelona
Flying high in all of their competitions, Barcelona returned to bring Real Madrid back to earth with a 3-1 win over their hosts at the Santiago Bernabeu, despite being behind after just 22 seconds. The Catalan victory shows that Josep Guardiola’s team are still the side to beat, and that Mourinho’s men still have some way to go before truly standing on the same pedestal as the Blaugrana.
Real Madrid were in need of a result then against Segunda B side Ponferradina in the Copa del Rey in midweek, and they managed to get it with a modest 2-0 win, courtesy of Jose Callejon and Cristiano Ronaldo. The former, inspiring for Los Blancos in recent weeks, said that Real Madrid ought to quickly turn their attention to Sevilla in order to win and grab the league leadership again: “We have to concentrate on our next league match. We’ve played one game less and look to win in Seville in order to be leaders."
It will be important for Mourinho and co. to clinch all three points and try to finish 2011 as winter champions. As valueless as this might be, it is an element that can boost a team’s morale as they prepare their second part of the season, knowing that extra encounters against Barcelona are likely to occur given the way both are playing.
Recent form
Sevilla:
Sevilla 3-0 Getafe (05/12; La Liga)
Levante 1-0 Sevilla (10/12; La Liga)
San Roque de Lepe 0-1 Sevilla (13/12; Copa del Rey)
Real Madrid:
Ajax 0-3 Real Madrid (07/12; Champions League)
Real Madrid 1-3 Barcelona (10/12; La Liga)
Ponferradina 0-2 Real Madrid (13/12; Copa del Rey)
Key absences
Sevilla: Diego Perotti
Real Madrid: Ricardo Carvalho
Players to watch
Sevilla – Alvaro Negredo: The former Real Madrid man has been campaigning hard to be in the Spain squad that will defend the country’s European Championship title next summer. Against a fierce competitor in Roberto Soldado, Negredo still has lots to do before securing that ticket. A good performance against Los Blancos will surely help.
Real Madrid – Cristiano Ronaldo: Usually adored by the Bernabeu outfit, Ronaldo was jeered by his own supporters as he failed to dazzle against Barcelona. The Portuguese since asked Mourinho to play him in the Copa del Rey in the hopes of making amends with the fans, and he will want to continue this against Sevilla.
Match Prediction
Real Madrid are by no means in crisis, even though the defeat against Barcelona was unexpected given the way the game started. Mourinho’s men are not yet in the clear however, but they do value the importance of a win in this match, and should find it in themselves to head back to the capital with the spoils. Sevilla 1-2 Real Madrid.
