Previews
MAR 09.08.2016
For the third year in a row, two LaLiga Santander teams are set to lock horns in the UEFA Super Cup. On this occasion, it will be Zinedine Zidane's Real Madrid, the Champions League holders, up against Jorge Sampaoli's Sevilla FC, the winners of the Europa League for the past three campaigns. Whoever comes out on top, they will be the seventh Spanish champions of this competition in the last eight seasons. That's right: with the exception of the 2013 edition, the UEFA Super Cup has ended up in a trophy cabinet in Spain every year since 2009, with FC Barcelona capturing it three times, Atletico Madrid twice and Los Blancos once.
Zidane has several absences to contend with ahead of the game. Cristiano Ronaldo is sidelined with the ligament injury to his left knee that forced him off early on during Portugal's European Championship final triumph, while Keylor Navas, Pepe, Toni Kroos and Gareth Bale will also miss the match in Norway.
Taking on the Madrilenians will be a new-look Sevilla with a new coach in the dugout. Argentinian Sampaoli has hit the ground running since being appointed and his side have won all five of their pre-season fixtures, beating River Plate 3-1, Independiente Santa Fe, Sandhausen and St. Pauli 2-1, and Mainz 1-0. Real Madrid, on the other hand, have lost one of their summer friendlies, succumbing to PSG 3-1, but have also enjoyed victories over Chelsea (3-2) and Bayern Munich (1-0).
Excitement and great football are sure to be served up in abundance in a UEFA Super Cup clash that will see a Spanish club crowned for the seventh time in eight years.
© LALIGA - 2016