Real Madrid vs. Sevilla: What to Watch in Key Warm-Up for Madrid Derby
Real Madrid welcome Sevilla to the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday night needing to win their game in hand before a crunch match with city rivals Atletico Madrid on Saturday.
Los Blancos sit in first place, one point clear of Barcelona and four points ahead of Atletico. Their game in hand comes courtesy of their trip to Morocco for the Club World Cup in December.
It's crucial for Real to collect the three points.
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A win against Sevilla and another against Atletico would put Los Merengues 10 points clear of Diego Simeone's side, effectively ending the latter's title chances. However, Real have yet to beat Atleti in five attempts this season.
To make matters worse for Real, the derby takes place at the Vicente Calderon, so they won't have the home support to fall back on.
According to Sky Sports, Carlo Ancelotti is well aware of the need to beat Sevilla: "The game against Sevilla is risky if we don't give our best. The most important match is tomorrow, not the derby."
Sevilla, meanwhile, know that an implausible win would put them four points clear of Valencia, strengthening their chances of securing a UEFA Champions League spot.
With a lot riding on this game for both sides, here are three things to watch when Real take on Sevilla.
Fatigue
For both teams, the match is the second of three within eight days, and both teams are coming off the back of an incredibly busy post-Christmas period. Real played seven games in January, while Sevilla have played nine since the winter break.
Ancelotti has stated that the importance of the game will dictate his team selection, per Sky Sports: "We can increase the gap on our rivals, so we will play our strongest team."
With such an important showdown on Saturday, an unchanged side from the win over Real Sociedad would be a bold move.
As AS tweeted, Real's key players have enjoyed plenty of time on the pitch:
If Ancelotti sticks with his trusted XI, minus Cristiano Ronaldo (who will of course be serving the second of his two-match ban), fatigue could be a serious problem in the latter stages of the game.
Real's edge comes in part from their explosive pace. If the game isn't sewn up before the hour mark, Los Blancos will face a tough end to the game. With Atletico looming on Saturday, this is hardly what Real need to prepare themselves.
Sevilla's powerful No. 9, Carlos Bacca, will be on the prowl for any mistakes by Real's back line. With Sergio Ramos struggling for form of late, Bacca's dribbling will be a real threat as the game wears on.
Ramos conceded two penalties in January and otherwise looked unconvincing. With Bacca, who has won 52 percent of his take-ons this season according to Squawka, charging at the beleaguered Spaniard, a shock upset looks a little less unlikely.
Of course, with Sevilla's similarly busy schedule thanks to the UEFA Europa League, they too could face similar problems late on.
The game could well be won or lost on which manager uses his subs most effectively.
Kevin Gameiro and Denis Suarez have often been deployed from the Sevilla bench this season, while Javier Hernandez has three goals and one assist in La Liga for Los Blancos, having made eight appearances as a sub and just one start.
If the game is delicately poised with 20 minutes remaining, we're in for a very interesting end to proceedings.
Gareth Bale's performances will be under scrutiny more than ever for the remainder of the season.
Despite a very impressive record of 36 goals and 27 assists in 73 appearances for Los Merengues since he joined in 2013 (including goals in three cup finals), Bale has recently been the subject of criticism from Real's fans and the Spanish media.
There have been audible whistles from the Madrid faithful directed at the Welshman in recent weeks. Meanwhile, Eduardo Fernandez-Abascal of the International Business Times reports a number of Spanish media outfits describing Bale as "selfish" and "individualist," thanks to incidents like this:
With Ronaldo serving his ban, the 25-year-old has the chance to step out from the Ballon d'Or winner's shadow. The winger failed to do so against Real Sociedad, with the following miss inviting yet more criticism:
Bale now has just one chance to make things right before Ronaldo's return against Atletico.
Real's fans demand perfection from their stars, and even the likes of club legends Ronaldo, Iker Casillas and Raul have been booed at one time or another.
The difficulty for Bale is that he's never going to be the main man at the Bernabeu until Ronaldo either leaves, declines with age or retires.
As with the miss against Sociedad, where he practically took the ball from James Rodriguez's toes, Bale is perhaps trying too hard to get back in the supporters' good books.
Still, the former Tottenham Hotspur man has scored 11 in 12 games where Ronaldo hasn't played, so despite his recent misses the stats are on his side.
And that's not to mention that Bale has either scored or assisted in each of his last five matches.
The Welshman will fly out of the blocks on Wednesday night and look to get involved in Madrid's attacking play from the outset. Bale is perfectly capable of dominating the game for his side and may well do so if things go his way early on.
However, another miss or a failure to get involved, and the Madridistas will be on his back. That could create a tense atmosphere, one which Sevilla will look to capitalise on.
Either way, Bale's performance will be a must-watch one.
Sevilla's Game Plan
Unai Emery's side have a very poor away record against La Liga's top sides, and the Spaniard will be looking for a turnaround in this regard.
Los Rojiblancos have been beaten very comfortably by Barcelona, Atletico and Valencia and also slipped to a 1-0 defeat against Athletic Bilbao.
According to Heath Chesters of Inside Spanish Football, Emery said in his pre-match press conference on Tuesday: "Clearly at the Bernabeu, the attacking capability of Real Madrid is very high, therefore our defensive surety has to be important, but you can't win games if you don't also attack, which is something we have to take into account."
Emery's willingness to attack Real could set up an exciting clash.
Emery is unlikely to deviate from his preferred 4-2-3-1 formation, so Vicente Iborra and Grzegorz Krychowiak will need to work hard defensively at the base of midfield.
Krychowiak in particular will need to shine here. The Polish midfielder has made 51 interceptions this season, as well as winning 47 tackles and 60 of 85 headed duels, according to Squawka.
If he's on top of his game, he can provide a platform for the likes of Bacca, Denis Suarez and Gerard Deulofeu to counter-attack effectively.
This can give the game an exciting, end-to-end feel as both sides look to catch each other on the break.
Sevilla have had success with this tactic throughout the season, with Bacca netting 12 goals and adding four assists in La Liga.
Real have to be considered favourites, of course.
Their immense quality in almost all areas of the pitch and home advantage give them a strong edge over a dangerous Sevilla side, and in all likelihood they'll come away with a victory.
However, Real could really do with putting the match to bed by half-time.
If not, Sevilla can push Los Merengues all the way, and the tension around the Bernabeu will be palpable.
With the Madrid derby on the horizon, this match is set to be a fascinating one.
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