Seville 2-3 real Madrid (Rodrygo Goes, Nacho Fernández & Benzema). Here’s the immediate reaction to the dramatic win. Coming soon: the best posts from the press conference, player ratings and a post-game podcast.
For most of the 2021/22 season, Sevilla have been the only rivals in the title race for Real Madrid – and while Barcelona’s recent resurgence has put their name in the mixer, it still feels like Sevilla are the greatest Threat represents an excitement. Perhaps that’s because this visit to Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán comes at an awkward time as attention has been focused on Europe following their quarter-final win over Chelsea. Both Ferland Mendy and Marcelo were absent from the game, so Dani Carvajal started at left-back and Lucas Vázquez filled in at right-back. Eduardo Camavinga started in midfield with Casemiro suspended and Fede Valverde continued to play on the flank. The bench was much smaller due to the many absentees, but only Rafa Marín was called up from Castilla to take a seat. Karim Benzema led the team as captain tonight.
It became clear very early on that Sevilla had worked hard to prepare for this game and they executed a high-pressure game plan from the start – trying to push Madrid back and force them into possession errors. It was evident that Madrid’s preparation was overshadowed by the Champions League as they seemed unwilling to match the intensity of the hosts. The first good chance came when Anthony Martial fired wide from long range. Real Madrid’s attitude was summed up when Luka Modrić missed a stupid free-kick on the edge of the box that was snuck in by compatriot Ivan Rakitić, who attacked in front of the disorganized wall. Events took a turn for the worse four minutes later as the defense collapsed, allowing Jesús Corona to extract Thibaut Courtois before finding Erik Lamela for easy completion. Eduardo Camavinga received a justified yellow card after a late challenge and could have been sent off after another questionable challenge – but the referee thought nothing of it. Madrid also looked mute in attack and created very few chances. Karim Benzema turned Jules Koundé but his resulting shot will be the easiest save Yassine Bounou has ever had to make. Halftime came with the hosts leading 2-0.
Camavinga is not a DM either. There is no “solution” without Casemiro unless you change your playstyle because there is no backup anchor on the team. You have to choose your poison. But when playing Kroos as a 6, you need to control play and counter-press to minimize damage
— Kiyan Sobhani (@KiyanSo) April 17, 2022
Camavinga was pulled at half-time to keep 11 men on the pitch and Rodyrgo Goes came on in his place. The second half started brighter as Benzema hit the keeper’s hands with more power than his last attempt. This was enough to put Madrid ahead and they capitalized on that shift by scoring their first goal. Vinícius Júnior connected through Dani Carvajal, whose low cross was eaten up by Rodrygo to continue his scoring run. Madrid kept pressing when Éder Militão decided to try his luck from distance, forcing the keeper to slide the ball over the bar. Sevilla were a shadow of their former self in the first half and if Madrid could keep up the pace then a positive result was in sight. Rafa Mir reminded the visitors that Sevilla weren’t completely dead after heading a huge chance well over the bar after a good move. This only led to too much drama as Vinícius Júnior appeared to give Madrid the equalizer, but it was ruled out for a questionable handball decision after the Brazilian picked the ball up on what appeared to be his chest in front of goal. After a fierce VAR check, the referee doubled down on his decision to rule out the goal, much to the confusion of Madrid players and officials. The real equalizer came not long after, as Nacho Fernández headed the ball home with his first touch since coming on as a substitute to get Madrid back in the game. There wasn’t long to claim the winner, but Madrid didn’t care. Karim Benzema combined with Vinícius Júnior and Rodyrgo Goes before drifting into the box and beating the keeper from close range to seal the win. Mariano Díaz almost extended the lead but his lob was saved well. The win not only demonstrated Real Madrid’s title-worthy resilience, but keeps them up to nine points ahead of Barcelona when all games are played. How good was that?! Watch the post-game podcast to relive all the drama when Kiyan is out later tonight.