Real Madrid held their final training session at Ciudad Real Madrid on Friday as Arbeloa’s men prepare to face Sevilla in the 37th and penultimate matchday of LaLiga at the Sánchez-Pizjuán on Sunday at 7:00 pm CEST.
The raw numbers underline why the fixture matters: Real Madrid have already been confirmed as runners-up this season and possess the second-best away record in Spain’s top flight, claiming 34 points from 18 away games. Sevilla sit 12th in the table, four points above the bottom three, and have taken 25 points from 18 home matches — the 14th-best home record in the division.
Form adds another layer. Sevilla have won their last three league matches, beating Real Sociedad, Espanyol and Villarreal, while Akor Adams has scored three times in his last five league matches for the club. Real Madrid, meanwhile, arrive after a mixed run: they lost 2-0 to Barcelona last weekend but recovered to beat Real Oviedo 2-0 at the Bernabeu on Thursday night. Earlier this season Real Madrid also beat Sevilla 2-0 at the Bernabeu.
Squad news tightens the storyline. Sevilla will be without Marcao and Manu Bueno on Sunday night, and Isaac Romero requires a late fitness test before his availability can be determined. At Real Madrid, Valverde completed part of the training session with the group, while Lunin continues his recovery from a viral process. Mendy, Militão, Arda Güler and Rodrygo remain in recovery processes ahead of the Sánchez-Pizjuán trip.
Context sharpens the stakes: despite Sevilla’s run of three straight wins and being only five points behind seventh-placed Getafe, they can still mathematically drop into the Segunda Division for the 2026-27 campaign. That reality — a club of Sevilla’s size sitting perilously close to the drop — is what gives this match urgency for the hosts even though Real Madrid’s finishing position is already settled.
The tension is obvious on paper. Sevilla’s recent victories suggest momentum, and Akor Adams’s scoring spike gives them a clear attacking threat. But history pushes the other way: Sevilla are on a 14-game winless run against Real Madrid and have suffered 12 defeats in that sequence. Real Madrid’s strong away points total and last season’s earlier 2-0 win over Sevilla at the Bernabeu make Arbeloa’s men the implied favorite — even as several key Madrid players work back from illness or injury.
How this plays out on Sunday will depend on two immediate facts. First, whether Isaac Romero is passed fit and whether Sevilla can field two of their recent match-winners in optimal condition without Marcao or Manu Bueno. Second, how much Real Madrid can lean on the form that produced 34 away points this season while managing a small squad of partially recovered players, including Valverde’s limited participation in training and several players still listed as recovering.
Given the balance of evidence — Real Madrid’s superior away record and Sevilla’s long winless run against their guests — the most defensible conclusion is that Real Madrid enter Sánchez-Pizjuán as the side most likely to extend their dominance. But Sevilla’s three straight league wins and the tightness of their place in the table mean Sunday’s match will be fought with high stakes for the home team, and a failure by Sevilla to pick up points would leave the club uncomfortably close to the relegation trap heading into the final weekend.
