Match Preview

Real Madrid return home to the Bernabéu on Saturday to take on Sevilla for the second and final time this season. It was back in September when Sevilla embarrassed Real Madrid 3-0 at the Pizjuán.

It could not be any closer going into Saturday’s match. Both Sevilla and Real are tied at 33 points, the 3rd and 4th table spots respectively. Real traveled and defeated fellow Seville side Real Betis last weekend.

The stakes are the highest they’ve been for Real Madrid in LaLiga in quite a while ahead of the match. A win brings either of these clubs within two points of Atlético and second place. Real will have to be up to the challenge and give the home crowd what they want and what they need.

Injuries/Suspensions

With the release of Real’s squad, both Courtois and Benzema will be back in the lineup. They will still be without the likes of Asensio, Kroos, Llorente, Bale, Mariano, and Vallejo. Navas is the newest addition to the injury list. An injury hasn’t been announced, but Odriozola was notably left off the roster.

Sevilla will be without Nolito and Maxime Gonalons, who have both missed significant time now.

There are no suspensions for either club in this match.

Potential XIs

Real Madrid

Courtois; Carvajal, Varane, Ramos, Marcelo; Modric, Casemiro, Isco; Vazquez, Vinicius, Benzema

Reguilón has played for Marcelo in Real’s last three matches, across all competitions. It should be expected that he’ll return to his usual spot on Saturday.

The replacement for Kroos is still a bit of an unknown, but Solari has shown some favorability in starting Fede Valverde. It would be nice to see Isco fill that role until Kroos returns though.

Vazquez is back from suspension, so he’ll likely start back on the right side. Vinicius will likely start as well after showing he can belong with this first team. And, obviously, Benzema returning means he’ll likely be starting once again.

Sevilla

Vaclik; Gnagnon, Kjaer, Gomez; Banega, Navas, Escudero, Sarabia, Mesa; Ben Yedder, Silva

Prediction

Real Madrid-Sevilla 3-2

Real Madrid and Sevilla have not drawn in a LaLiga match the last 27 times that they’ve played. Sevilla also have not won at the Bernabéu since 2008, and have only defeated Real in Madrid three times in the 21st century. Who am I to argue against history?

With all that in mind, that certainly doesn’t mean it’s a given. Sevilla are a very good team and will give Real some problems that they must come prepared to handle. With how Real have struggled against much lower sides in the table, it’s even more crucial they step up for this match.

This will not be a match where Real have to worry about an upset, this is a match between two sides that are equal in points on the table. This match separates the two from each other, barring a draw, and puts one of the teams closer to Atlético and Barcelona.

Needless to say, Real need to a win a match of this caliber in front of their fans. A victory over a quality side like Sevilla makes up a bit for some of the stinkers that they have dropped as of late.