Real Madrid vs. Sevilla: 5 takeaways from a painful 2-2 draw
![Real Madrid, Zinedine Zidane (Photo by David S. Bustamante/Soccrates/Getty Images) Real Madrid, Zinedine Zidane (Photo by David S. Bustamante/Soccrates/Getty Images)](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/bf1e4a9502d8ce146800f07d0995491d7ba160bf2a69ed0aca983be2668629ff.jpg)
Real Madrid showed amazing fight to stay alive
Real Madrid looked done and dusted after Ivan Rakitic sank the penalty to give Sevilla a 2-1 lead following the handball. But Los Blancos nearly pulled a rabbit out of the hat. First, Eden Hazard deflected Toni Kroos’ longshot in the 95 minute. Credit to Kroos for taking the initiative to take on the shot, and it was nice to see Hazard get credit for a goal after his tumultuous Wednesday.
And then Los Blancos nearly won it. You know the “Toni Kroos Special”? That finessed right-footed shot into the bottom right-hand corner? Casemiro came inches away from scoring a similar goal, nearly atoning for months and months worth of ill-advised shots from distance. But, sadly, it was not meant to be.
The 5 players Real Madrid should have never sold. dark. Next
A 2-2 draw feels like a defeat in a title race, but Real Madrid showed great fight in the end. And the point means they are not dead yet. Real are behind the curve on Atletico Madrid, but this title race is so wild that they are not completely out of it. They still have plenty of reason to fight, even if we have to be honest and say this performance was not good enough over 90 minutes and constitutes a clear statistical setback in the title race. At this point, though, Madridistas have to take the silver linings, like Marco Asensio’s wonderful finessed goal at the near post.