La Liga preview: Sevilla eye Real scalp on penultimate weekend
Friday 12 May 2017 20:03, UK
Sevilla will attempt to put another dent in Real Madrid's campaign when they travel to the Bernabeu on Sunday evening.
Jorge Sampaoli's men ended Real's 40-match unbeaten run in all competitions when they met in the reverse fixture and will now be intent on ruining their domination aspirations.
The hosts moved a step closer to the La Liga and European double with their midweek elimination of Atletico and are now just four games away from winning their two biggest titles in the same year for the first time since 1957/58.
The clash is one of seven available on Sky Sports at 7pm, with Barcelona needing to do their part when they visit Las Palmas, while Sporting Gijon need to win at Eibar to stand any chance of avoiding relegation.
Real Madrid v Sevilla (Sunday 19.00, Sky Sports 3HD)
Sky Bet odds: Real Madrid 1/5, Draw 13/5, Sevilla 10/1
Zinedine Zidane's men not only have the reverse fixture as a warning, but also have recent home failures against Barcelona and Atletico Madrid to prevent any sort of complacency despite the odds suggesting they should win comfortably.
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That task is, however, not quite of the same magnitude as facing Sevilla earlier in the season, when they looked genuine title contenders.
Just three wins in 11 has seen those hopes evaporate and they have even lost track of Atletico the battle for third place, with motivation seemingly dwindling.
They are not completely assured of Champions League qualification, but anything other than a defeat at home to relegated Osasuna on the final day will see them fend off Villarreal's chase even if they lose in the capital.
Their record on the road has been the most troubling, with no wins in five and just four goals scored during that run.
Real are primed to take advantage with a gluttony of attacking options to rotate, with James Rodriguez and Alvaro Morata in particularly good form, while Gareth Bale's stand in Isco scored the goal which killed Atletico's comeback home hopes on Wednesday.
Zidane has a big call to make on Morata's selection in particular. Karim Benzema's piece of magic opened up Atletico for Isco's goal but Morata's goalscoring record has been vastly superior.
Indeed, the Spaniard, has averaged a goal every 83 minutes from his 13 starts and 11 substitute appearances, a better ratio than Cristiano Ronaldo and more than twice as good as Benzema's.
Speculation over his future is only growing as we head towards the transfer window and failure to start him in another key game will only add fuel to that fire.
However, Zidane's focus will simply be on securing the first of four wins which would see Real crowned Spanish and European champions for just the third time in their history.
Las Palmas v Barcelona (Saturday 1900, live on Sky Sports 5HD)
Las Palmas 16/1, Draw 9/1, Barcelona 9/1
Barca may be even shorter odds for a victory on Sunday night but there's a case to suggest they face a tougher prospect.
All but one of Las Palmas' 10 wins have come in Gran Canaria, while they held Real to a 2-2 draw at home earlier in the season.
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In their Estadio Gran Canaria, they boast the only La Liga stadium in which Lionel Messi has not scored, while the 2,177km journey to the island makes it Barca's longest trip by some distance.
Remarkably, they've also have the second highest possession stats in La Liga, although they were thumped 5-0 in the reverse fixture by Barca, the side with the best, despite enjoying a relatively impressive 40 per cent of the ball at the Nou Camp.
Indeed, they managed 50 per cent when Atletico visited a fortnight ago and also lost 5-0, while they have collected just one point from their last five games.
Barca know, with only head-to-head record keeping them above Real Madrid, who have a game in hand, victory is imperative if they are to defend their title.
Best of the rest…
Sunday evening's action could hold even more immediate implications for the final relegation place, with Sporting Gijon needing to win at Eibar to take it to the final day as they sit five points adrift of safety.
They can be hopeful of a favour in the other key clashes, with fourth-from-bottom Deportivo visiting fifth-placed Villarreal, while Leganes, who are a point better off, visit sixth-placed Athletic Bilbao.
Elsewhere, Real Sociedad will look to take advantage of any slip ups from Villarreal and Bilbao to climb into the top six, while Atletico can sew up third spot by beating Real Betis in Andalucia.
