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On an evening that Sevilla would've smelled blood considering Real Madrid's recent performances, Los Blancos nicked all three points with a rare gritty performance. It puts them in second place, level on points with Athletic Bilbao but trailing on goal difference.
To put the size of that win in perspective, Real Madrid hadn't taken a single point from their previous four visits to Sevilla but have put their Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan nightmare behind them with this win.
Going into this game, Sevilla had conceded only three shots on target in four games, and only one goal in the league. Real Madrid managed four shots on target in this game alone and Karim Benzema managed to convert one of them which was enough to clinch the points.
This win shines particularly bright when looked at in the context of results around the league that has seen Barcelona lose and Atletico Madrid draw in games that they should've ideally won. Nonetheless, given the negativity around the club, Real will appreciate the positive result.
#4 Ocampos shines
There was plenty to appreciate about Sevilla on the night, but above all others stood Lucas Ocampos. While Jesus Navas provided an early threat for the home side, the more consistent problem for the Real Madrid defence was the Argentine.
He repeatedly took on Ferland Mendy and won that personal battle. His deliveries in the box were also largely on the money, but Sevilla's forwards didn't attack the right areas. On one occasion, Luuk De Jong got on the end of a cross from little more than six yards out but his effort was well wide.
As the game progressed and Sevilla got desperate, Ocampos kept winning his battles and banging in the crosses, but neither Hernandez nor De Jong were able to convert the chances. In fact, despite taking nine shots in the game, none of them were on target for Sevilla.
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#3 Discipline from Real Madrid
So far this season, Real Madrid have played with careless abandon, but perhaps the midweek smacking at the hands of Paris Saint Germain finally got them to see the light.
Zidane's side had a semblance of order as they took on an organised Sevilla side that were difficult to break down and capable of creating their own chances.
Los Blancos' Achilles heel so far this season has been the midfield's inability to cope with the movement around them as they struggled to catch up with others in transition, so they decided to sit.
Casemiro and Toni Kroos, who we're used to seeing galloping up and down the pitch provided stable protective just ahead of their back four forming a solid defensive line.
The full-backs as usual (particularly Carvajal) bombed forward to support the attackers, but Bale and Hazard were found tracking back and contributing defensively too.
It's definitely not a finished article yet, but it seems like the revolution Zidane promised seems to have arrived slightly late in the form of a disciplined performance.
#2 Real Madrid lacking chemistry
Perhaps a byproduct of the disciplined performance, but Real Madrid lacked a certain verve going forward.
We've seen the likes of Gareth Bale, Vinicius Jr, Luka Modric, and Isco light up the attack for Real Madrid with some great skill in the past, but Los Blancos' primary weapon was their quick interplay in the final third. The display against Sevilla lacked that interplay for the most part.
Only on two occasions did Madrid successfully pull off a good team move in attack; the first ended in Carvajal taking a shot at goal and the other culminated in Benzema's goal.
Not to ignore the plenty of good individual performances as Gareth Bale and James Rodriguez stepped up in defence as well as attack. Raphael Varane was immense at the back, Carvajal was a constant threat going forward, and Karim Benzema created and found space with his movement. The most promising thing for Real Madrid was Eden Hazard showing glimpses of his full capability. Once he's familiar with his team-mates, this Real Madrid attack could be a force to reckon with.
#1 Real Madrid's high press
Though not the finished product, Real Madrid did plenty of pressing in the opposition half, led chiefly by Gareth Bale and James Rodriguez. It yielded a couple of good chances in the first half and is likely to be a tactic Real Madrid will use again in the future.
For most of the first half, the Welshman and the Colombian chased down everything they could, joined in part by Karim Benzema as well. It saw them create a couple of chances against a resilient Sevilla defence.
More importantly, the press subdued some of the attacking impetus of the home team with Reguilon and Navas pinned back.
Should they be able to bring a little more organisation to it and start to lay down pressing traps, they could build it into a cohesive pressing unit that they could deploy when required.
