Carlo Ancelotti's main men in attack eventually found the net as the deposed champions look to at least finish the season in style
Kylian Mbappe boosted his hopes of finishing as La Liga top scorer and Jude Bellingham sealed victory late on after Real Madrid struggled to break down nine-man Sevilla in Sunday's eventual 2-0 win for Carlo Ancelotti's side.
Sevilla set up defensively, and Madrid never really had any answers to the problems they were posed. The home side even went down to 10 men after just 12 minutes when Loic Bade dragged Mbappe down on a counter-attack, and a lengthy VAR check upheld the decision despite Sevilla protestations. Mbappe had the best chance of the first half, meanwhile, but skewed it wide.
Madrid woke up in the second half, though it helped that Sevilla went down to nine men after a horrific challenge from substitute Isaac Romero that left Aurelien Tchouameni reeling. A Madrid goal always felt as it was coming, and Mbappe provided it with a wonderful arrowed effort from outside the box that flew into the bottom corner. Bellingham added a second after 87 minutes as he walked the ball into an empty net after a clever knock-down from Gonzalo Garcia.
Madrid have already ceded the title to Barcelona, and it showed in their lack of intensity. Still, if point totals matter – they don't really – this was an exercise in picking up a few more.
GOAL rates Real Madrid's players from the Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan Stadium…
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Andriy Lunin (7/10):
Not much to do all said. Might have gotten away with a half-shout for a penalty after failing to deal with a cross appropriately.
Federico Valverde (7/10):
A solid shift at right-back and had a shot cleared off the line.
Jacobo Ramon (6/10):
Calm at the back in a rather quiet afternoon.
Jesus Vallejo (6/10):
A confusing one from Madrid's forgotten man. Looked a bit shaky at times, but did well to last over an hour.
Fran Garcia (7/10):
Full of legs on the wing, and put in a few good tackles, too. Looks Madrid's best left-back, at the moment.
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Aurelien Tchouameni (7/10):
A disciplined performance at the base of midfield. Won his tackles and kept the ball moving.
Luka Modric (5/10):
Looked old and tired. Rumours that he wants a new contract surfaced this week, and there's not much to suggest Madrid should give him one.
Jude Bellingham (6/10):
A really mixed game. Spent a lot of time sulking and flying into tackles before scoring the goal to seal it.
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Arda Guler (7/10):
Had a couple of shots well denied, and played some clever passes, too. Might be the best long-term option on the right.
Endrick (6/10):
Looked dangerous when the game opened up, and was lively on the break, but he's not the man to break down a disciplined opponent.
Kylian Mbappe (8/10):
The most apparent threat of the afternoon. Put a couple wide, but you always got the sense that he could win it, and he did.
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Victor Munoz (6/10):
Crucial in the build up to Madrid's second.
Gonzalo Garcia (6/10):
Assisted Bellingham to mark a nice cameo.
Lucas Vazquez (N/A):
No time to make an impact.
Dani Ceballos (N/A):
No time to make an impact.
Carlo Ancelotti (6/10):
Not much to praise or moan about, really. Got the result, even if it wasn't pretty. The best thing they can do now is save face and win out.
