Real Madrid host Sevilla with revenge on their mind

Real Madrid will be desperate for revenge after being humiliated in a 3-0 loss at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan earlier in the season.

Real Madrid host Sevilla in an enticing top four clash that’s the pick of the matches for La Liga matchday 20. Both sides currently sit on 33 points as Sevilla have dropped a number of points in recent matches, while Real Madrid have won four of their last six. Neither side can afford to drop points as they’re already 10 points off Barcelona and Alaves are right behind in fifth place with 32 points.

Santiago Solari is already under huge pressure even though he has only been in the job since the end of October due to the lack of an upturn in results or performances that was expected after Julen Lopetegui’s departure. This is a match Los Blancos would have been expected to win in previous seasons, especially considering they’re at home. However, that is far from certain based on this season’s performances.

Sevilla have only picked up seven points from their last six games so a gap has started to form between them and the top two. If they want to be serious title challengers then they need to stop this decline and start winning in order to put the pressure on Barcelona and Atletico Madrid. They also need Andre Silva to start firing again because he hasn’t scored in his last six after scoring eight in his first 12 league matches.

The previous fixture between the two heralded Sevilla as a legitimate contender due to a potent counter-attacking display which ripped Real to shreds. They took advantage of Real’s high defensive line through quick transitions to catch the majority of the team high up the pitch. Solari’s side are unlikely to take such risks as there is less emphasis on retaining possession, but Sevilla have creative individuals such as Ever Banega and Pablo Sarabia who can break down defensive blocks.

Sevilla and have a clearly defined system under Pablo Machin. He has carried on with the 3-5-2 he favored at Girona and it has brought success so far, although he has made a few bold tweaks such as not using a traditional defensive midfielder in his midfield trio. They are a team capable of transitioning quickly as well as patiently probing for an opening so they can be a tough side to stop. Athletic Bilbao are the only team to stop them from scoring in the last 10 matches and they impressively managed to do it twice.

Solari has favored a 4-3-3 system during his time as Los Blancos manager which has carried on from his predecessors Zinedine Zidane and Lopetegui, although he is much more close stylistically to Zidane. However, he used a 3-4-2-1 formation in the last league match against Real Betis with Luka Modric and Vinicius Jr. playing behind Karim Benzema. They came away with a 2-1 victory but only saw 26.5 percent of possession in a less than convincing performance.

Real have a significant injury list: Marco Asensio, Marcos Llorente, Gareth Bale, Toni Kroos, Mariano Diaz and Jesus Vallejo are all unavailable, although Thibaut Courtois is likely to be back. Lucas Vazquez will also be back from suspension so he should go straight back into the starting XI. In the absence of key players, Solari has placed faith in youngsters such as Federico Valverde, Vinicius and Sergio Reguilon.

Los Hispalenses have been a lot luckier with injuries; Maxime Gonalons and Nolito are the only players currently out and neither of them is a regular starter.

The absence of Kroos is a huge blow for Real due to how skilled he is at retaining possession and ensuring his side are able to control the tempo of matches. Therefore, they’re likely to let Sevilla control possession which also reduces their susceptibility to quick transitions. Jesus Navas and Marcelo will be a key matchup due to the Brazilian’s unwillingness to track back as well as Navas’ heavy involvement in Sevilla’s attacking play and relentless work-rate.

Sevilla can certainly create openings against this leaky defense. Real have only kept one clean sheet in their last seven matches in all competitions. However, their poor form away from home isn’t promising as they have only picked up 13 points from 10 games while Real have picked up nine points from a possible 12 at the Bernabeu during Solari’s tenure. This match is finely poised ahead of what is likely to be an exciting clash.