Real Madrid vs Sevilla

Estadio Santiago Bernabeu is the venue as Real Madrid and Sevilla go head-to-head in a blockbuster La Liga showdown.

Real Madrid built on their eye-catching 3-1 beating of Barcelona in last weekend’s El Clasico by putting three unanswered goals past rock-bottom Elche in midweek La Liga action. Newly-crowned Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema was on the scoresheet in a historic fixture, which saw a team denied three goals in a single match by VAR. That sums up Madrid’s dominance of La Liga, with ‘Los Blancos’ boasting an almost perfect ten-game start to their title defence (W9, D1). Carlo Ancelotti’s men have won four of their five home league games this season (D1) despite failing to keep a clean sheet on each occasion. Thibaut Courtois’ imminent return between the sticks could come in handy as ‘Los Merengues’ bid to stretch an undefeated home H2H record that spans back to December 2008 (W14, D1).

As for visiting Sevilla, Bono’s last-gasp heroics to thwart Valencia’s 102th-minute penalty preserved a 1-1 draw for the Andalusians in midweek, maintaining Jorge Sampaoli’s unbeaten three-game La Liga start at the helm (W1, D2). However, Sevilla’s woeful domestic form has seen them pick up just two wins from their opening ten league fixtures (D4, L4), so it’s no major surprise they are only two points clear of the relegation zone. On the bright side, after losing their first two La Liga games on the road this term, ‘Los Rojiblancos’ have been unbeaten in the last three (W2, D1) despite their paltry scoring return. Except for a 3-2 beating of Espanyol in early September, the visitors have netted under 1.5 goals in their four remaining away league outings, suggesting Madrid’s backline could have a field day this weekend.