The Seville Derby is known as one of the fieriest in world football, but this Sunday’s encounter is also a top-of-the-table tussle with very real ramifications in the LaLiga Santander title race.
The latest edition of El Gran Derbi will take place this Sunday at 4.15pm CET, as Sevilla FC welcome city rivals Real Betis to the Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán for a derby match with the stakes as high as ever before. Sevilla approach this derby in second place on 51 points and Real Betis in third place on 46 points, making this the first ever LaLiga Santander derby in which both sides from the Andalusian capital will start the match inside the top three of the top tier.
Only four previous times have they even both been inside the top five ahead of a league derby, with one of those occasions coming earlier this season. That was in Matchday 13 in November, when Sevilla were third and Real Betis fifth ahead of the former’s 2-0 win, but now the Rojiblancos and Verdiblancos are even higher in the standings, fighting for Champions League qualification and dreaming of challenging leaders Real Madrid.
This weekend’s derby is setting up to be one of the most important in years. It should also be one of the most entertaining to watch, with both of these sides having played some excellent football this term under Julen Lopetegui and Manuel Pellegrini.
Sevilla’s midfield are controlling matches week in, week out. Rafa Mir is putting the ball in the back of the net when he leads the line with regularity and January signings Anthony Martial and Tecatito Corona have added an extra spark to the attack. Real Betis, meanwhile, beat to the rhythm of Sergio Canales, who is having one of his best ever seasons alongside the ‘magician’ Nabil Fekir.
Both teams will also have significant absences for the derby, with Real Betis’ top scorer Juanmi and Sevilla’s star centre-back Jules Koundé serving suspensions. That adds extra intrigue to the contest, as these two sides will have to overcome adversity if they are to take the vital three points on offer.
A third Gran Derbi of 2021/22
As well as their earlier LaLiga Santander meeting this season, which Sevilla won, the neighbours were also pitted against each other in the 2021/22 Copa del Rey last 16. That turned out to be an intense and dramatic encounter, with Betis running out 2-1 winners and still on track to reach the final.
For Sevilla coach Lopetegui, that Copa del Rey exit in January was the first derby defeat since taking over at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán back in 2019. He had previously won four and drawn one of his derby duels, but now he has tasted defeat against Real Betis for the first time he will want these three points more than ever.
Sevilla’s first home derby with fans in three years
Curiously, Lopetegui has never experienced home support in the Gran Derbi, despite having coached in six of them already. Only two of his previous Gran Derbi games were at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán, but both of them took place behind closed doors as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Finally, he’ll be able to enjoy the special derby atmosphere, as this will be the first derby since April 2019 in which the Sevilla fans can belt out their famous club anthem before the ball gets rolling.
Sevilla fans will actually be able to enjoy two derbies in a row at their home ground, as the upcoming clash between the Sevilla and Real Betis women’s teams will be held at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán the following weekend, on March 5th. Before that, though, comes this Sunday’s LaLiga Santander clash, one with so much on the line.
