Luis García Plaza says Sevilla will need a “perfect game” to beat Real Madrid

“To beat Madrid on their own ground, you have to play a perfect game,” Luis García Plaza said ahead of Sevilla’s trip to the Santiago Bernabéu. The coach was speaking two days before the ninth round of LaLiga EA Sports, with the quality and resources of the opposition firmly in view.

After the game against Levante, the coach said he felt more strongly that his side had let two points slip because of clear chances missed before the equaliser. He also considered it the match in which Sevilla had created more scoring opportunities than in any other, and praised his players’ response.

Absences will shape preparations. The coach said Isaac would miss the match through an accumulation, while Miguel and Guridi are injured. Kochorashvili, who had not trained during the week, was due to try a session the following day to see whether he could at least make the bench. García Plaza also said Lucas had returned to training more or less normally.

Luis García Plaza acknowledged the difficulty of the visit to the Bernabéu, where his side have not won since 2008. He said he had not yet used that statistic with his players, although he might do so. “The difficulty is at its maximum: they have top players, a top coach and a top club, but we will compete,” he said.

Real Madrid, he added, can turn difficult situations around and has several ways to make the difference. He pointed to the match against Roma and the individual quality of Carlos Espí and Endrick. Despite that warning, García Plaza said his team would approach the fixture with maximum enthusiasm and a commitment to compete in every match.

The coach also praised Robbie Ure’s work. He noted that the forward had other clear chances against Levante and described a player who can come short for the ball, hold it up and contribute in different ways.