Sergio Ramos returned to his former club and found himself in the thick of the action as Real Madrid lost 3-2 in Sevilla.
Ramos had the opportunity to reply to goals from Wissam Ben Yedder and Steven Nzonzi but smashed his spot kick against the bar and then turned a cross by Gabriel Mercado into his own goal to give Sevilla a 3-0 lead.
Real were able to reduce the margin of defeat with late goals from Borja Mayoral and Ramos who made no mistake with his second penalty awarded in injury time.
Los Blancos missed the chance to go second in the table above city rival’s Atletico but seem to have lost interest in La Liga as the team focus on the Champions League final later this month.
Zinedine Zidane made sweeping changes to the side that drew 2-2 with Barcelona on Sunday with no place in the lineup for Keylor Navas, Raphael Varane, Marcelo, Luca Modric, Toni Kroos, Gareth Bale or Cristiano Ronaldo who is carrying a knock.
The final score flattered the visitors who were chasing the game after 26 minutes when a route one ball from Nico Pareja was headed into the path man-of-the-match Ben Yedder for Sevilla’s first goal.
Thereafter, Sevilla had the better of chances and could have been three ahead before the end of the first half in which Real Madrid managed only two touches inside the Sevilla box. The home side were denied minutes before Ramos’ missed penalty when Casilla saved a goal bound effort from Ben Yedder and the stand-in keeper made another good stop after Muriel was sent through on goal.
Zidane felt he’d named an eleven capable of winning the game but admitted the result will have no effect on their goal for the rest of the season, which is the Champions League Final against Liverpool.
Speaking after the game, Zidane said: “This defeat is not going to affect us at all for the remainder of the season. We can’t be happy with what we did in the league, but with our performance tonight we can be.
“The team I put together was capable of winning the match. I don’t regret anything. It’s a pity. I have nothing to criticise the players for because in the second half they did everything to win.
Real have two league games remaining before they face Liverpool in Kiev on Saturday, 26 May. They are at home to Celta Vigo on Saturday with the final game at Villareal one week later. It leaves seven days to prepare for the Champions League Final when Zidane hopes to have a fully fit squad to choose from.
