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Real Madrid got all they hoped for tonight against Sevilla. The match was not as easy as the score reflects, but Madrid took advantage of their scoring chances.
Pepe and Sergio Ramos saw a yellow card in the 30th and 33th minute respectively, leaving Madrid's defense in a bad situation. When Sevilla were playing at their best, Di María flipped the ball to Callejón, who just needed to touch the ball to place it inside the goal protected by Varas. Yet again, Sevilla's goalkeeper was not to blame as he could do nothing to stop Callejón's touch.
The best for Real Madrid was yet to come, as Cristiano Ronaldo shot the ball from very far away and scored his second goal of the game. This was probably one of the best goals Ronaldo has scored for the merengues. It was a very comfortable lead for Madrid going into halftime, but Pepe was sent off in the 43rd minute for being too physical with his arms against Negredo.
Callejón, who completed a very good first half was the man that got subbed for Albiol to replace the Portuguese center back. It was probably the best decision Mourinho could make, but every Madrid fan felt badly about Callejón leaving the pitch. He will surely start against Ponferradina to keep his scoring streak going.
Real Madrid was able to control the second half much better than the first. The team didn't try to do all that much on the offensive side and was smart by applying a more defensive mindset.
In the 64th minute, Di María scored a face-to-face chance against Javi Varas after a nice pass from Karim Benzema. The French striker didn't score but played quite well, thereby showing that he has other skills beyond scoring. Sami Khedira joined the game for Di María after the Argentinian's goal. The winger showed that he is a key player for Real Madrid, delivering two assists and scoring one goal in this game. Right now, he is arguably one of the best players in the world.
Jesús Navas scored the first Sevilla goal in the 69th minute, but with 1-4 in the score board there was not much hope of a comeback. Manu Del Moral saw a red card after a tackle to Lass Diarra. The French midfielder completed a very good defensive game playing with Xabi Alonso in the two-man midfield. Eleven minutes after the red card, Benzema was fouled inside the box.
This allowed Cristiano to score another hat-trick, beating Javi Varas in the penalty kick. The game was almost over, but Hamit Altintop and Negredo didn't want to miss the party and both scored in extra time. Altintop's goal was a collaboration between Cristiano Ronaldo, Alonso and the Turkish player, who just had to push the ball inside.
This game will help Real Madrid recover from their loss against Barcelona as los blancos and their fans will enjoy the Christmas season as the leaders of the Liga with a three-point margin.