|
Listen now
|
LaLiga leaders Real Madrid fought back from 2-0 down to beat Sevilla 3-2 as Karim Benzema’s stoppage-time winner took them a step closer to clinching the title.
Sevilla looked to be breathing life back in LaLiga’s title race, but Carlo Ancelotti’s Real Madrid side produced a brilliant second-half performance to make a real statement.
Perhaps suffering something of a Champions League hangover, Real Madrid were sluggish and found themselves trailing to goals from Ivan Rakitic and Erik Lamela, both caused by defensive mishaps.
But the pattern of play was dramatically flipped on its head after the break, with Rodrygo pulling one back and fellow substitute Nacho Fernandez equalising, before ‘king’ of comebacks Benzema sealed the turnaround.
Read Also: LaLiga: A Weekend of Direct Duels as Sevilla Host Real Madrid
A promising start from Sevilla brought a well-earned 21st-minute opener, as Rakitic saw his free-kick fly straight through Real Madrid’s feeble wall and into the net.
Sevilla doubled the lead four minutes later, Lamela tucking into an empty net after Jesus Corona got in behind Eder Militao and squared before Thibaut Courtois could pounce.
Eduardo Camavinga escaped a second booking for what looked like a blatant foul from behind on Anthony Martial, who had to be withdrawn due to injury, and the Real Madrid midfielder was replaced at half-time by Rodrygo, who was decisive almost immediately when he turned in Dani Carvajal’s low cross to reduce the deficit.
Vinicius thought he had restored parity when hammering in with 16 minutes to go, but it was wiped out for an apparent handball – a decision referee Guillermo Cuadra Fernandez stuck with after consulting VAR.
But Real Madrid were far from finished, as Nacho smashed home from Carvajal’s cutback to subsequently tee up talisman Benzema to fittingly get the winner, showing immense composure before picking his spot after fine work by Rodrygo.