As part of the 17th day of La Liga, Real Madrid, runner-up to Barça and who remained on a sluggish victory against Alavés, welcomed Sevilla FC, ninth, this Saturday evening. At the Santiago Bernabeu, Xabi Alonso opted for a classic 4-3-3 with his strong men: Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Jr, Rodrygo, Arda Güler and the inevitable Kylian Mbappé were present in the eleven. For his part, Matias Almeyda organized his troops in a 3-5-2 with Sanchez and Romero at the forefront of the attack. Expected around the corner, the Madrid club was quick to appear threatening.
Served by Rodrygo, Fran Garcia challenged Vlachodimos but the Sevillian goalkeeper did not tremble (4th). A first big situation which however did not reflect the appearance of this start of the meeting. Without complexes, Sevilla chained the phases of possession and also proved dangerous through Romero (7th). Jostled and regularly reframed by a desperate Xabi Alonso, the Madrilenians ended up becoming emboldened. Mbappé fired a first shot off target (17th). From a corner, Huijsen came close to opening the scoring (24th) but the release ultimately came from Bellingham. Broke, Rodrygo obtained a free kick which he placed on the head of his teammate (1-0, 38th).
Real comes back one step behind Barça
Ahead at the break despite a final acrobatic attempt from Sanchez (45+3rd), Real Madrid continued their business after returning from the locker room. Very discreet during the first act, Mbappé stood out again but his two new strikes still lacked precision (47th, 51st). In the process, the Bondynois again crushed his attempt (52nd). Put in difficulty, the Sevillistas reacted in turn. Launched in depth, Romero again came up against a great Courtois (53rd). Imperial, the last Belgian rampart of Casa Blanca still saved his team after a magnificent collective movement, concluded by Romero (56th). Opportunistic and much more visible, Mbappé placed a header which ended its course on the crossbar (58th). If the debates became lively, the scoreboard did not move.
Always as vigilant, Courtois repelled another missile from Sanchez (66th) while Marcão, sanctioned with a second yellow card, left his teammates at ten (68th). With a numerical superiority, Real controlled the end of the match. On a brilliant inspiration, Rodrygo, found by Mbappé, was very close to making the break but his recovery on one foot smashed the visitors’ bar (78th). A few minutes later, Mbappé finally scored his 30th club goal of the season from the penalty spot (2-0, 86th) and equaled CR7’s historic record. With this victory (2-0), the Merengues come back one step behind FC Barcelona, which travels to Villarreal this Sunday. For its part, Sevilla stagnates in 9th place and suffered a second consecutive defeat after its elimination in the Copa del Rey against Alavés.
