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Alvaro Arbeloa has admitted he and his Real Madrid team mates are happy to be going into the derby this weekend with a four point cushion at the top of the table.

Los Blancos defeated Sevilla 2-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday night moving them clear of Barcelona in second place. They go into the match against Atletico de Madrid seven points ahead of them, and a victory at the Vicente Calderon would all but end a Los Colchoneros’ hopes of retaining the title they won last May.

Speaking to the Real Madrid website after the victory over Unai Emery’s team, Arbeloa said he was relieved to pick up the three points.

“I think it was a pretty important match, because we were up against a top team. We also had the chance to establish a significant lead at the top of La Liga and go into Saturday’s match more at ease. It was a difficult match and now we have a cushion. If we win at the Calderón, it’ll be a big step in La Liga. We can’t say that we’re going to win. At this moment in time we can’t say that, but if we manage it we’ll have a big gap between us and Atlético and it would be a real statement,” he stated.

He also lamented the losses of Sergio Ramos and James Rodriguez to injury, but instead of being too downbeat, said their absence would provide a good opportunity for other players such at Nacho to come in and make their mark. Cristiano Ronaldo is also back after suspension this weekend.

“Ramos and James are big losses, but we are lucky enough to have the best player in the world coming back. We go into the match at the Calderón really up for it.

“Bale should be completely calm. He has scored three goals in three finals, he has given us a lot and it’ll end up going in for him. He is one of the best players in the world and we’re lucky to have him with us. He has the complete confidence of the coach, his team-mates and the fans. Nacho, as always, put in a ten-out-of-ten display; that doesn’t surprise me,” he said.

 

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Paul Clement has hailed Real Madrid’s performance against Sevilla last night and said Los Blancos are in a strong position in the league.

The Champions League holders moved four points clear of Barcelona and seven ahead of Atletico de Madrid after seeing off the Andalucians in a hard-fought match. Jese Rodriguez and James Rodriguez scored the goals, but Madrid were left to count the cost of victory after the Colombian and defender Sergio Ramos left the field injured.

It has since been confirmed Ramos will miss three weeks with a hamstring strain while Rodriguez is out for up to two months after breaking a bone in his foot. Los Blancos take on Atletico de Madrid at the weekend, meaning boss Carlo Ancelotti is facing a selection headache, especially as he’s without Pepe and Marcelo in defence too.

Speaking after the game, Clement, who has been linked with the Newcastle and QPR jobs back in the Premier League, said: “It was a very important win for us because we got the three points. Right now the teams are all equal in terms of games played, with Real Madrid four points ahead of Barcelona and seven points ahead of Atletico Madrid. It’s a very good position to be in.”

“Sevilla was a tough match as they are fourth in the table and we were made to suffer towards the end, something we didn’t expect. We also lost James [Rodriguez] and [Sergio] Ramos to injury and we suffered for that. Sevilla are a very aggressive team and they played with a lot of intensity. We now have just a couple of days to prepare for the match against Atletico and it’s a very important game,” he added.

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Real Madrid have been hit with a double injury blow with James Rodriguez set to miss two months with a broken foot and Sergio Ramos three weeks with a hamstring injury.

The pair picked up the injuries in the 2-1 win over Sevilla last night, a game in which James scored in. Ramos didn’t last 10 minutes and was replaced by Nacho Fernandez after he pulled up with the injury.

The news will be a big blow to boss Carlo Ancelotti, who is already facing a defensive crisis for this weekend’s derby with Atletico de Madrid at the Vicente Calderon. Left back Marcelo is suspended while Ramos’ usual defensive partner Pepe is also sidelined through injury.

Los Blancos will also be missing two of their usual midfield trio after news of Rodriguez’s injury. The Colombian had formed an excellent understanding with Luka Modric and Toni Kroos until Modric picked up a long-term injury back in November. To make matters worse, Sami Khedira has missed of the campaign through injury.

A statement on the club’s official website confirmed the injury, and means he will miss the knock out games against Schalke and possibly the quarter finals of the Champions League should Madrid progress.

“After the tests carried out on James Rodriguez by the Real Madrid medical services at the Sanitas La Moraleja Hospital, he has been diagnosed with a fracture of the fifth metatarsal in his right foot. The player will undergo surgery in the coming hours,” he read.

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Real Madrid left back Marcelo has claimed the yellow card he received against Sevilla was undeserved.

The defender will miss the clash against city rivals Atletico de Madrid at the weekend after picking up his fifth booking of the season for a foul on Vitolo in Los Blancos’ 2-1 win on Wednesday evening.

TV replays showed there was hardly any contact between the pair the the yellow card was quite harsh on Marcelo, who is approaching Roberto Carlos’ record for the number of games played by a left back for the club.

“I’m happy with the result, the three points we achieved were very difficult. I’m not angry about the yellow, although we all saw that I didn’t touch [Vitolo]. You have to approach each game with intensity and not go thinking about the next one, but I never touched him. I want to be available for Madrid. I don’t know what will happen, but I hope my ban gets rescinded,” he told reporters after the game.

He also went on to lament the number of injuries suffered – Sergio Ramos and James Rodriguez look likely to miss the game against Atletico through injury – but Marcelo said the squad has enough to cope.

“It was a very strange game, we got the first goal when they were pressing a lot, but all teams come to the Bernabeu to win, and we had to suffer for the win. They’re significant casualties, but we have a very good squad. We saw Nacho have a great game, Varane too.”

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Real Madrid moved four points clear of Barcelona at the top of the table as the earned a hard-fought victory against Sevilla.

Goals from James Rodriguez and Jese Rodriguez gave the hosts a comfortable lead, but the visitors pressed hard at the end and almost salvaged a point.

Worse news for Carlo Ancelotti came when Sergio Ramos and James Rodriguez left the field injured. Both will probably miss next weekend’s derby against Atletico Madrid, just like Marcelo, who was shown his fifth yellow card and will be suspended.

Los Blancos suffered an early blow as Sergio Ramos suffered a hamstring injury and had to be replaced by Nacho Fernandez before the tenth minute.

Yet, Los Blancos recovered fast and took the lead before the 15-minute mark. Marcelo sent a superb cross from the left and James Rodriguez dove to head easily to the back of the net.

Sevilla could have levelled in the next play after a perfect counter-attack. Vitolo threaded a brilliant pass to Vicente Iborra, but the midfielder shot straight at the post after rounding Iker Casillas.

Bad luck struck Los Merengues again as James was hit in the foot by a Sevilla defender and had to leave the field injured. Jese Rodriguez came in for the Colombian.

Injuries also affected the visitors, as goalkeeper Beto suffered a cranioencephalic trauma after a collision with Benzema.

Substitute goalie Sergio Rico had a terrible start, conceding a goal in his first minute on the field. A great collective play from the home side ended with Benzema finding Jese in the back post. The Spaniard smashed a powerful shot into the bottom corner.

Los Blancos played brilliantly in the second half as Sevilla left more spaces in defence. Yet, Sergio Rico made a couple of great saves to keep his team alive.

Unai Emery men reacted in the last stage of the game exerting a high pressure on their rival, and they ended up scoring thanks to a great play from Vitolo. The winger hit the byline and reversed a pass to Iago Aspas who netted from close range.

Carlo Ancelotti’s men suffered in the last minutes but they ended up earning three important points ahead of the derby against Atletico Madrid. The Italian will struggle to select the starting defenders, with Pepe, Fabio Coentrao and Ramos injured, and Marcelo suspended.

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The president of FC Barcelona has hinted someone at Real Madrid is behind the case of Neymar’s transfer to the Catalan outfit being investigated by the Spanish tax authorities.

Josep Bartomeu has been called to give evidence later this month over claims the La Liga side duped the Spanish authorities out of 2.8 million euros tax for 2014. The case is the latest in series of embarrassments for the Nou Camp side, who are barred from signing anyone this calendar year due to their illegal signing of foreign players under the age of 16.

The Nou Camp side initially claimed the total cost of bringing the Brazilian forward to Spain last summer was 57.1 million euros, but a fan took the club to court as he wanted more transparency over the deal.

Speaking on Spanish television, Bartomeu fell short of accusing Real Madrid of being behind the case, but hinted heavily that he believed it to be that way.

“We have done nothing wrong and we will keep saying the truth. The signing of Neymar took place using the most prestigious lawyers. Other clubs wanted to sign Neymar paying more money but they didn’t manage it and they didn’t like that. Someone now has overstepped the line,” he stated.

He continued: “I’m not saying Madrid are behind this but Neymar’s father told me that there were two offers: Barça and Madrid. Madrid wanted to buy him and were ready to pay more for him.

“A year ago Neymar was playing well and then all this fuss suddenly came up. Maybe somebody doesn’t like him. Now again he is playing well and there is another judicial process.”

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Sami Khedira has reached an agreement with Bayern Munich to join the Bundesliga champions next summer, British tabloid the Daily Express has claimed.

The Germany international’s contract with Real Madrid will expire on June 30th and Los Blancos don’t seem interested in extending it. Thus, he is already free to negotiate with any other club.

Khedira has been long linked with a move to Pep Guardiola’s team, and despite interest from Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United, he has finally chosen Munich.

Lucas Silva arrival and Asier Illarramendi’s decision to stay in Madrid after receiving an offer from Athletic Bilbao have turned Khedira into the number five choice for the holding midfielder position. Real Madrid directors had not approached him over a contract renewal, so the 27-year-old has made his decision to leave.

If the rumour is confirmed, Khedira will join former team-mate Xabi Alonso. Yet, many big European clubs will surely keep trying to convince him while his move to Bayern is not official. It is quite unusual to get a world-class midfielder on a free transfer, and Khedira will surely get many interesting offers.

The German arrived to Real Madrid in the summer of 2010 and has spent five seasons at the Santiago Bernabeu, scoring nine goals in 150 appearances.

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Real Madrid could steal one of the most promising Asian players from Barcelona, Spanish sports newspaper Marca has revealed.

17-year-old playmaker Lee Seung Woo signed for Barcelona in 2011 after he was named as the Best Player of the Under-16 Asian Cup. However, FIFA’s sanction over the Azulgranas could facilitate Lee’s arrival at the Santiago Bernabeu.

The South Korean pearl was banned from playing with Barcelona one year ago, since he is one of the nine kids whose signing FIFA considered illegal.

He will not be allowed to play until the necessary paperwork is completed, and Los Blancos directors might try to take the chance to negotiate a possible move.

If the problem with FIFA is not solved, Lee Seoung Woo will be free to join any club when he turns 18 years old, in January 2016. Many big European clubs will be interested in signing the so called Asia Messi.

Los Merengues have boosted their budget for top young talent and they have recently signed Norwegian 16-year-old Martin Odegaard, Spanish 19-year-old Marco Asensio and Dutch 16-year-old Mink Peeters.

Barcelona were banned for two transfer window over the signing of foreign players under the age of 16 and will not be allowed to complete any transfers until the winter transfer window next year.

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Real Madrid vs Sevilla match preview

Real Madrid take on fifth placed Sevilla at the Santiago Bernabeu this evening hoping to extend their lead at the the top of the table to four points ahead of a crucial weekend of action.

Los Blancos take on city rivals Atletico de Madrid on Saturday at the Vicente Calderon and a win in their next two games would open up a 10 point gap between the two sides, all but ending the defending champions’ chances of retaining their trophy. A win against Sevilla and Atletico would also heap pressure on Barcelona, would would go into their weekend game against Athletic Bilbao seven points behind Carlo Ancelotti’s men.

Real will be without the services of Cristiano Ronaldo this evening as he’s serving the second of his two-game ban for his sending off against Cordoba. The Champions League holders have scored 24 goals in the past six home games and will be confident they have enough fire power to see off Unai Emery’s team. This visitors have been poor on the road recently, losing three of their last six.

They’ll also be without the services of Ever Banega who missing out tonight, although the Real defence will have to be alert as Carloa Bacca is a dangerous frontman who has netted 12 goals already this campaign.

Probable line-ups:
Real Madrid: Casillas: Carvajal, Ramos, Varane, Marcelo; Illarramendi, Kroos, Isco; Rodriguez, Benzema, Bale
Sevilla: Beto; Fuguieras, Arribas, Kolodziejczak, Navarro; Iborra, Carrico, Vidal, Vitolo; Bacca, Aspas

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Sevilla boss Unai Emery has said he’s happy Cristiano Ronaldo is missing from the Real Madrid team tonight when the Andalucians take on Los Blancos.

The Portuguese star sits out the second match of his two-game ban for his red card received against Cordoba. He will be back in the side for the match against Atletico de Madrid at the Vicente Calderon at the weekend.

Speaking to the press ahead of the clash at the Santiago Bernabeu tonight, Emery said he’s happy his team doesn’t have to deal with the prolific frontman but added he is wary of the threat posed by other Real Madrid players.

“If I said I would prefer Cristiano Ronaldo to play I would be lying,” he told reporters. “But they have other players than can play more of a ‘combination’ game.

“The individual characteristics they have are of a high standard. All of them are very good. In their stadium, additionally, they are very strong.”

He went on to add that despite the array of stars in the Los Blancos side, he would be sending his team out to be playing attacking football with the intention of claiming all three points.

“We play every game to win, logically the difficulty of the rival is going to affect your chances, but we have nothing in mind other than going out to win.

“Tomorrow we’ll be thinking that we hope to reach 45 points, we have the opportunity: we know the difficulty involved in beating Madrid at their stadium but our only mentality is being able to overcome it.”

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