Preview: Real Madrid vs. Sevilla - prediction, team news, lineups

Carlo Ancelotti's side are currently six points clear of second-placed Barcelona in Spain's top flight, while Sevilla occupy 12th position, having picked up just 10 points from their first 10 games of the season.

Match preview

Real Madrid opened up a six-point advantage over second-placed Barcelona in the table when they recorded a 3-0 victory over Elche on Wednesday night, with Federico Valverde, Karim Benzema and Marco Asensio on the scoresheet for the reigning champions.

Ancelotti's team also beat Barcelona 3-1 in El Clasico on Sunday, which has allowed them to gain control of first spot in the table, although the gap from first to second will be back down to three points if the Catalan side are able to beat Villarreal on Thursday night.

Real Madrid have won nine and drawn one of their 10 league matches this season to collect 28 points, scoring 25 goals in the process and conceding eight; the capital giants have not been perfect this term, but they once again look the team to beat in Spain's top flight.

Los Blancos have already booked their spot in the knockout round of the Champions League, so next week's trip to Germany to take on RB Leipzig will be pressure-free, although they are yet to secure first spot in the section, with Leipzig four points behind with two games left.

Real Madrid have won six of their last seven La Liga games against Sevilla, including a 2-1 success at Bernabeu last term, while they have not lost to Los Nervionenses at Bernabeu in the league since December 2008.

Sevilla's away struggles against Real Madrid are somewhat surprising considering their recent success, but they did manage to pick up a point at Bernabeu in May 2021 and would certainly accept that result here.

There is no getting away from the fact that it has been a tough campaign for Rojiblancos, who sacked Julen Lopetegui as head coach earlier this month due to a poor run of results; Jorge Sampaoli was confirmed as the team's new manager on October 6, returning to Estadio Ramon for a second spell at the helm.

The 62-year-old has won one and drawn three of his four games in charge since his return, with the victory coming at Mallorca in La Liga last weekend.

Sevilla then played out a 1-1 draw with Valencia in the league on Tuesday night, with Erik Lamela coming off the bench to level the scores in the 86th minute after Edinson Cavani had sent the visitors ahead.

Los Nervionenses finished fourth in La Liga last season, but they are currently down in 12th position at this stage, already 10 points behind fourth-placed Atletico Madrid, while the team face a battle to reach the last-16 stage of the European Cup, currently sitting third in Group G, five points behind second-placed Borussia Dortmund, and they are next in action in the competition against Copenhagen next week.

Real Madrid La Liga form:

W

W

D

W

W

W

Real Madrid form (all competitions):

D

W

W

D

W

W

Sevilla La Liga form:

W

D

L

D

W

D

Sevilla form (all competitions):

L

L

D

D

W

D

Team News

Real Madrid are expected to have Thibaut Courtois back in their starting XI this weekend, with the Belgium international returning to training following a back issue.

The 30-year-old has missed his side's last six matches in all competitions with the injury, but Ancelotti said ahead of the Elche match that the stopper should be back against Sevilla.

Dani Ceballos remains out with a hamstring issue, while Mariano Diaz could again be absent with the knock that forced him to sit out the game with Elche.

There are likely to be a couple of changes to the side that started on Wednesday, with Ferland Mendy and Aurelien Tchouameni potentially coming in for Antonio Rudiger and Rodrygo.

As for Sevilla, Tanguy Nianzou is expected to be fit for the clash with Real Madrid despite being replaced against Valencia on Tuesday night due to muscular discomfort.

Karim Rekik, Fernando and Jesus Manuel Corona remain on the sidelines through injury, while Jose Angel Carmona is a doubt due to the issue that forced him off against Los Che.

Head coach Sampaoli could switch to a back four for this match, while Jesus Navas, Thomas Delaney and Lamela could be introduced into the starting XI, with the latter potentially leading the attack.

There could also be a starting role for Isco against the club that he left on a free transfer in July.

Real Madrid possible starting lineup:

Courtois; Carvajal, Militao, Alaba, Mendy; Modric, Tchouameni, Kroos; Valverde, Benzema, Vinicius

Sevilla possible starting lineup:

Bono; Navas, Montiel, Nianzou, Telles; Gomez, Gudelj, Isco, Delaney, O Torres; Lamela

We say: Real Madrid 2-1 Sevilla

Sevilla have shown a lot of improvement under Sampaoli, but it is really difficult to back against Real Madrid at the moment, especially at Bernabeu. Los Blancos might have to be patient on Saturday, but we are expecting the champions to put another three points on the board in this contest.

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