Real Madrid vs Sevilla: Three key battles to keep an eye on | OneFootball

Real Madrid have only one game left in 2024, against Sevilla in La Liga. The match is scheduled to take place at the Santiago Bernabeu, which will allow the Los Blancos fans to bid farewell to their players for the Christmas break.

Naturally, the Merengues will be looking to go into the break and the next year with a victory, but there are several more reasons why Carlo Ancelotti’s side will be gunning for a win in this game. For instance, they will be looking to build on their win against Pachuca, which gave them their fifth title of 2024, the Intercontinental Cup.

Similarly, Real Madrid are only one point behind Barcelona and Atletico Madrid in the league table, and thus they will be looking to take full advantage of the points that any of these teams drop in their upcoming tie on Saturday to improve their position on the table, and hopefully end the year as the La Liga leaders.

Furthermore, their opponents, Sevilla, are also not having a very good 2024-25 season, as they currently stand 11th in the league table. However, the Andalusians will have their own reasons for putting their best performance in this last match of the year, and one can expect a highly entertaining battle in this game.

More precisely, the three following battles are expected to be the most entertaining and decisive ones:

Rodrygo Goes vs Loic Bade

Rodrygo Goes has slowly been getting back into his form lately and has scored in his last two games for Real Madrid, first against Rayo Vallecano and then against Pachuca in the Intercontinental Cup final.

With these performances, he has once again proven his importance in Ancelotti’s team, and the Italian tactician will be looking to rely on him once again against Sevilla as Vinicius Junior is suspended for this game.

In Vinicius’ absence, Ancelotti can play him in either of the three forward positions, on the right wing, where he usually plays for Real Madrid, on the left wing, which is arguably his strongest position, or in the centre, with Mbappe on the left.

However, wherever he is stationed, he will be looking to move centrally and get closer to the goal. Here, he will be facing a very competent defender, Loic Bade, who has been performing at quite a good level under Garcia Pimienta.

According to Sofascore statistics, he averages, 1 interception, 2 tackles, and 3.8 ball recoveries on average each game in La Liga, and Rodrygo will have to be at his best to get the better of him.

Dodi Lukebakio vs Fran Garcia

The Belgian forward Dodi Lukebakio has been one of the best players in the Sevilla squad this season, and he is also his team’s leading goalscorer. He has already scored 7 goals in his 17 La Liga appearances and will be looking to add even more goals to his tally against one of the best teams in Spain on Sunday.

This will be particularly the case as he will not have to Ferland Mendy on the right wing position, who is the better of Real Madrid’s two left-backs. The Frenchman is out with a muscle injury, and Fran Garcia will be starting in his place.

Although he is not really known for his defensive prowess, Garcia has not really disappointed with his defensive contributions this season. He was at fault for one of Rayo Vallecano’s goals in their last La Liga game, but he can still put up a match against a forward as good as Lukebakio, especially as he will also get some support from the midfield.

Saul Niguez vs Federico Valverde

Although he has not been an automatic starter for Sevilla this season, Pimienta will certainly be looking to field him against Real Madrid to take advantage of his experience and skills. The Spanish midfielder has faced the Merengues several times during his time with Atletico Madrid, including in the 2016 UCL final, which his side lost on penalties.

This season, he has already provided 3 assists in 7 games and creates 1 big chance on average in each game. Thus, his creative spark will be essential for Pimienta’s side to create chances for the forward line.

To keep this threat in check, Carlo Ancelotti will rely mostly on Federico Valverde, whose energy and stamina will once again be key for the Merengues in this game. The Uruguayan will certainly put up a very difficult opposition to Niguez, as he recovers 5.4 balls in each game and gets dribbled past only 0.4 times on average in a game.