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Julen Lopetegui returned to the Santiago Bernabéu for the first time and befell the same fate as the men who preceded him. You have to go back 14 coaches and more than a decade to find the last Sevilla manager to win here after they were defeated for a 13th consecutive visit. Yet this did feel different and Lopetegui – whose previous employment ended after just 139 days with Real Madrid – departed angrily, convinced his current team could have had more, accusing the officials of denying them.
Lopetegui had seen an opening goal ruled out by the VAR and a wonderful last-minute opportunity for the new signing Youssef En-Nesyri flash past the post. He also saw Casemiro score a first ever double to give Madrid a 2-1 victory. For a defensive midfielder, the Brazilian has a habit of appearing when they need him – and this time they did. This might have been different. There were many reasons why it was not, Casemiro prime among them, even if Sevilla’s focus fell largely on the referee.
Sevilla thought they led on the half hour when Luuk de Jong headed in Éver Banega’s corner only for celebrations to be halted by the sight of Juan Martínez Munuera with his finger in his ear, a long wait following before he headed to the VAR screen. As De Jong had peeled towards the far post, Éder Militão turned after him and crashed into Nemanja Gudelj, standing in his path. At first, it seemed to be Militão who precipitated the crash, but another angle suggested that Gudelj had turned his shoulder and leaned in to meet him. That it was “clear and obvious” was questionable, more material for a growing debate, but for Martínez Munuera it was enough.
Lopetegui was furious. At half-time he departed, muttering “shameful” and after the game he was adamant there was “no reason to rule it out”, insisting a week’s work had been lost. Zinedine Zidane replied: “I saw it: it’s a clear block, there’s a foul, the referee looks, rules it out, and that’s that. It’s totally normal. There’s no reason to complain.”
There was more work to be done, more controversy to come. Sevilla had enjoyed significant possession, but there had been no meaningful chances until Madrid got the breakthrough, at a point when thoughts were turning to changes, men who might illuminate a grey afternoon.
It was Luka Jovic who switched the lights on: a superb, first-time back-heel, ingeniously imagined and impressively executed, released Casemiro, who classily dinked over Tomas Vaclik. The game needed that and so did Jovic, Casemiro encouraging the fans to recognise the man who made it.
Sevilla equalised soon afterwards, the move beginning with Munir and De Jong turning, twisting and bundling up the right, the ball running to De Jong when Raphaël Varane failed to clear. With Munir down, knocked over and possibly committing a handball, De Jong’s footwork was superb before curling into the far corner. “There’s a handball,” Zidane said. Still angry, Sevilla’s sporting director Monchi did not agree and claimed that if that goal had been ruled out too, he would have “gone down there and taken my team off the pitch”.
They stayed on, but did not win, Casemiro heading in Lucas Vázquez’s long, looping cross soon afterwards to lead again and set up a frantic final 20 minutes. With Sevilla chasing, this opened up, the Bernabéu on edge even if the best chances were Madrid’s. Vinícius Júnior made the clearest for Toni Kroos – saved by Vaclik – then shot wide before that last, dramatic burst into the box by En-Nesyri. Casemiro could even have had a hat-trick, but that would have been too much even for him. He jogged back smiling, his work done.
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