Sevilla vs Real Madrid. Spanish La Liga.
Ramon Sanchez PizjuanAttendance40,386.
Sunday 15 January 2017 09:53, UK
Cristiano Ronaldo is expected to return to the Real Madrid starting XI for the top of the table clash against Sevilla live on Sky Sports 1 HD on Sunday.
La Liga leaders Real return to Sevilla for the second time in 72 hours after the sides played out a thrilling 3-3 draw in the Copa del Rey on Thursday.
Sergio Ramos and Karim Benzema sparked Real's comeback as Zinedine Zidane coped without Cristiano Ronaldo, who was left out of the squad, to win 6-3 on aggregate.
The Portuguese - who was last week crowned FIFA World Player of 2016 - is touted to lead the line for Los Blancos at the Sanchez Pizjuan, a ground where he has found the net 11 times in his last six La Liga appearances there.
“He's back in the team and he's looking good," Zidane said looking ahead to the tie. "He's worked hard this week and had a rest day on Thursday. He's absolutely fine”.
One man who'll also be in line to start against his former club is Ramos. The defender drew criticism last week for celebrating in front of home fans after scoring a panenka penalty but Zidane has backed his captain to put the incident behind him.
"He's our captain and he's an example for everybody, not just inside our dressing room. He's surely the most iconic player for Spain but what has happened is already in the past.
"Sevilla and Real Madrid have called for the same thing: complete respect for the players and for football, which is what the people come to see.
"The matter is closed and we all want to see a good football match. We've all called for respect, not just for Sergio, but for all the players. We're fully focused on the game, all we want is to play and see a football match, there's no more to it”.
Real set a new Spanish record in the 3-3 draw, taking their unbeaten stretch to 40 matches. After entering the history books, Zidane predicts a tougher contest this time round.
"Sevilla will make it hard for us, even more so than the other day in the Cup match," he added. “Our plan is to keep the ball, but Sevilla will make life hard for us. We'll have to wait and see how it pans out, but they'll definitely make it difficult and we'll have to dig deep, but they will as well. The crucial thing is that we show our hunger, character and give it everything we've got”.
Sevilla manager Jorge Sampaoli said at his press conference that he welcomed the options new signing Stevan Jovetic offered while vowing to make the match "unbearable" for Real.
Sevilla v Real Madrid is live on Sky Sports 1 from 7.30pm on Sunday
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