Real Madrid vs Sevilla Match Preview and Prediction

By John


 There was no 'El Clásico' hangover for Real Madrid, who followed up beating Barcelona 3-1 by thrashing Elche 3-0 in midweek with newly-crowned Ballon D'Or winner Karim Benzema on the scoresheet. For the first time in La Liga (LL) history, a side had three goals overturned by VAR, highlighting how dominant Carlo Ancelotti's partially-rotated side was on the night.


Worryingly for Sevilla, league-leaders Madrid (W9, D1) will almost be back to full strength for this contest, and should welcome back goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois as they bid to extend an unbeaten home H2H record that stretches back to December 2008 (W14, D1). His return from injury could have a big impact too, as none of the last three of those matches saw Los Blancos keep a clean sheet (W2, D1).


Sevilla are making progress after a dreadful start to the season with Jorge Sampaoli starting his second spell in charge with a four-match unbeaten run (W1, D3) in all competitions. Those draws all ended 1-1, including their last outing against Valencia, where they salvaged a point with a late equaliser. That was just their third goal after half-time in LL this term, so questions remain about their ability to go the distance, particularly against big hitters such as Madrid.


A woeful record in the Spanish capital won't inspire confidence either and Sampaoli may want to forget his previous two H2Hs here as Sevilla lost both games via a three-goal margin. His appointment has seen them continue their upturn in away league form though (W2, D1) and with both teams scoring in seven of their last eight such fixtures (W3, D3, L2), this has the potential to be another high-scoring affair.


Players to watch: While three of Benzema's last four LL goals came after the 70th minute, Sevilla's Érik Lamela could strike at any time as he scored a first-minute opener against Espanyol but netted in the 86th minute against Valencia!


Hot stat: This match pits LL's most carded side (Sevilla: Y38, R3) against the least (Madrid: 12Y).

Fottennis Prediction: Real Madrid 3 Sevilla 1

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