Sevilla vs Real Madrid

Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan sets the stage for an exciting La Liga showdown between Sevilla and Real Madrid.

Sevilla secured La Liga survival with two games to spare after beating Las Palmas 1-0 on Tuesday to halt a dreadful eight-game winless league streak (D2, L6). Nonetheless, it’s been another disappointing season for the record-time Europa League winners as they missed out on European qualification for the second year running. Despite fans’ recent protests against the club’s hierarchy, Los Nervionenses head into proceedings unbeaten in their last three home league outings (W1, D2), seeking their first home victory against Real Madrid since September 2018 (D1, L4). A 1-1 draw in this corresponding fixture in 2023/24 suggests Sevilla won’t go down without a fight, particularly because they aim to avenge a dismal 4-2 defeat in December’s encounter at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu. 

In the meantime, Real Madrid pulled off a late comeback to dispatch Mallorca 2-1 in midweek league action, yet lost the title race to Barcelona the following day. This trip to Andalusia will mark Carlo Ancelotti’s final away league game in charge of Los Blancos before he takes over the Brazil job, meaning he’ll be heavily motivated to pour more misery on Sevilla’s embarrassing season. However, Ancelotti’s charges slipped to a 4-3 defeat at Barcelona on their most recent La Liga travel after winning three in a row via a single-goal margin between mid-March and mid-April. Another tight contest is on the cards, considering the last five H2Hs at this venue have yielded a full-time margin of under 1.5 goals (W4, D1).