Real Madrid Fall to Sevilla 3-0 for 1st La Liga Loss of Season

Sevilla handed Real Madrid their first La Liga loss of the season with a 3-0 triumph on Wednesday night. Two goals from AC Milan loanee Andre Silva and one from Wissam Ben Yedder were enough for the hosts at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan Stadium. 

Real missed the chance to usurp rivals Barcelona at the top of the table after the Blaugrana surprisingly lost 2-1 to Leganes.

Real Inconsistent in Attack Without Ronaldo

Selling club-record goalscorer Cristiano Ronaldo to Juventus was always going to impact Real's forward line at some point. The effect of Ronaldo's departure has taken six league games to be felt, though, after Los Blancos scored 12 in their previous five domestic matches.

What Real miss without Ronaldo is the consistency to keep scoring. The terrific No. 7 was as close to a guarantee of goals as it gets, regardless of the fixture.

Ronaldo's finishing and appetite to score were painfully absent as Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema toiled in the final third. The result was a blunted attack barely able to trouble Sevilla's defence:

It's a disturbing occurrence, especially since Sevilla conceded 58 goals in La Liga last season. The harsh reality for Real boss Julen Lopetegui is he doesn't have the luxury of relying Ronaldo, modern football's equivalent of playing with house money.

Instead, Real need to share the goals around, a process demanding a search for consistency likely to take time.

Andre Silva Another Great Piece of Business from Sevilla

Sevilla stay competitive, both domestically and in Europe, because of a knack for skilled recruitment. The club finds hidden gems or forgotten talents and turns them into key players.

Silva's arrival has continued the process. The Portugal international's loan switch from the Rossoneri already looks like a masterstroke:

Silva has joined Ben Yedder, a shrewd buy from French club Toulouse in 2016, to form a fearsome strike partnership. Being able to unearth match-winners on the cheap, even after master team-builder Monchi left to join AS Roma in 2017, is a credit to Sevilla.

The club has the talent and depth to make a stronger run at a top-four finish than last season, as well as pose a considerable threat in the UEFA Europa League.

Julen Lopetegui Still Has Lot to Prove After Fast Start

Sevilla's credentials are proven, but it's a different story for Lopetegui. The 52-year-old is already facing daunting expectations after replacing Zinedine Zidane, who won three UEFA Champions League trophies in a row and a La Liga title as the Real manager.

Lopetegui's fast start, five wins and a draw in all competitions, may have obscured the obvious weaknesses in his squad. A closer look at who his team have beaten shows there is still work to be done:

Beating contending teams—and even a capable one like Sevilla—will go a long way to helping Lopetegui prove he belongs. It won't be easy though, not without Ronaldo up front, the midfield beginning to lose its influence and a defence ageing at key positions.

Lopetegui has a lot of work to do before he has people believing he's capable of credibly emulating Zidane.

What's Next?

Saturday's derby against Atletico Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu will be the toughest test to date for Real. Sevilla will travel to Eibar earlier in the day.