Skip to main content

Real Madrid slump to defeat at Sevilla

updated 7:42 PM EDT, Sat September 15, 2012
Cristiano Ronaldo cuts a dejected figure during Real Madrid's game against Sevilla on Saturday
Cristiano Ronaldo cuts a dejected figure during Real Madrid's game against Sevilla on Saturday
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
  • Real Madrid record worst start to La Liga season in over a decade
  • A 1-0 defeat at Sevilla leaves them with four points from as many matches
  • Jose Mourinho's team now eight points behind leaders Barcelona
  • Tito Vilanova's side maintain 100% start to season with 4-1 over Getafe

(CNN) -- Real Madrid's dismal start to the La Liga season continued on Saturday as the reigning champions slumped to a 1-0 against Sevilla at the Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan.

German international Piotr Trochowski scored the only goal of the game in the second minute to lift Sevilla to third in the table with eight points and leave Madrid languishing in 10th with four -- their worst start to a season since 2001-02.

Cristiano Ronaldo's attempts to get Madrid back in level terms were thwarted by Andres Palop in Sevilla's goal before the break and Jose Mourinho's double substitution at halftime -- new signing Luka Modric and Karim Benzema replacing Angel Di Maria and Mesut Ozil -- made little impact.

"Right now I have no team. We are a team without concentration. At halftime, I changed two players and wanted to change six," Mourinho said.

"Right now I have no team. We are a team without concentration. At halftime, I changed two players and wanted to change six
Jose Mourinho, Real Madrid coach

To make matters worse, arch rivals Barcelona recorded their fourth straight win of the season on Saturday -- running out 4-1 winners against Getafe -- to open up a gap of eight points over Real.

Brazilian full-back Adriano opened the scoring for Barca in the 32nd minute before Messi, who came on as a substitute in the 59th minute, bagged two goals in the final quarter of the match.

The first came from the penalty spot in the 74th minute -- after Pedro had been brought down by defender Juan Valera -- before he side-footed a second goal four minutes later.

David Villa -- who also came on as a substitute -- rounded off a resounding win for Tito Vilanova's men with a injury-time strike.

The only downside was the early departure of Carlos Puyol, who limped off in the 57th minute.

"The most important thing is we have 12 points from 12, we tried to control the game and we could have scored a few more. We'll see tomorrow how long Puyol will be out, it's a problem, he gives us a lot of organisation at the back and is very important for us,"Vilanova said.

In Saturday's other fixtures, Malaga are up to second after beating Levante 3-1 while Valencia recorded their first win of the season with a 2-1 win against Celta Vigo.

ADVERTISEMENT
Part of complete coverage on
CNN Football Club
Be part of CNN's coverage of European Champions League matches and join the social debate.
updated 10:34 AM EDT, Wed April 24, 2013
Luis Suarez's biting of Branislav Ivanovic is the latest episode of moments of madness when soccer stars behave badly.
updated 5:38 AM EDT, Fri March 29, 2013
Former South African president and Nobel peace prize laureate Nelson Mandela joins guests at his home in Cape Town, on August 20, 2008 to celebrate his 90th birthday year, at an event organised by the Mandela Rhodes Foundation (RODGER BOSCH
Sunderland's partnership with the Nelson Mandela Foundation is part of its bid to woo the African market.
updated 11:58 AM EDT, Thu March 28, 2013
South African children play football in a township in Bloemfontein on June 21, 2010. South Africa will face France in their final Group A, 2010 World Cup, first round football match on June 22.
Each year as many as 700 Cameroonian young footballers leave Africa in search of a professional career abroad.
updated 8:01 AM EDT, Mon May 6, 2013
Referees across Europe are feeling the heat. Insulted, threatened, chased off the field, attacked, hospitalized and, tragically, killed.
updated 8:45 AM EST, Wed March 6, 2013
A red card for Manchester United's Nani during Tuesday's loss to Real Madrid sparks huge social media reaction.
updated 7:25 AM EST, Tue February 26, 2013
A real human brain being displayed as part of new exhibition at the @Bristol attraction is seen on March 8, 2011 in Bristol, England. The Real Brain exhibit - which comes with full consent from a anonymous donor and needed full consent from the Human Tissue Authority - is suspended in large tank engraved with a full scale skeleton on one side and a diagram of the central nervous system on the other and is a key feature of the All About Us exhibition opening this week.
Footballers have a battery of physios, fitness trainers and doctors all striving to fine-tune their physique -- but are they missing a trick?
updated 9:24 AM EST, Tue February 26, 2013
No Englishman has won the EPL title in over 20 years, while a leading manager reveals that English coaches are now "not respected abroad."
updated 5:33 AM EDT, Mon May 13, 2013
Football supporters demonstrate in front of Italian TV RAI after the match between A.C.Milan and Lazio Roma was cancelled 11 November 2007. The spectre of football violence resurged in Italy on Sunday as the shooting dead of a fan sparked nationwide disturbances which forced the suspension of several Serie A matches. Banner reads 'Racism can stop League but death of tifosi has no signification.
Hardcore Italian football "ultra" Federico is a Lazio supporter who happily admits directing monkey chants at black players.
updated 6:23 AM EST, Tue March 5, 2013
When Jupp Heynckes made his Bundesliga debut as a player in 1965, the name of Bayern Munich was a new one for the nascent German league.
updated 2:02 PM EST, Tue February 19, 2013
Football's world governing body FIFA has confirmed it will use goal-line technology at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
updated 9:03 AM EST, Tue February 19, 2013
Match-fixing has become a worldwide issue, with hundreds of matches under investigation -- but how do you actually fix a football game?
updated 12:00 PM EST, Mon February 18, 2013
U.S soccer star Robbie Rogers has "come out" as gay on the day he retired from the game, making the announcement on his blog.
updated 5:31 PM EST, Mon February 11, 2013
The wealth of owners like Chelsea's Roman Abramovich often fuels success, but for other clubs such backers prove a mixed blessing.
updated 12:40 PM EST, Thu January 31, 2013
Brand Beckham is moving from the "City of Angels" to the "City of Light" as the football icon signs a short-term deal and offers to give away his pay.
updated 7:47 AM EST, Thu January 31, 2013
Fireworks inside his own house, a car crash in his first week at Manchester City, that iconic t-shirt -- the EPL will miss Mario Balotelli.
updated 8:42 AM EST, Wed January 30, 2013
The Secret Footballer reveals the complex issues surrounding racism in the English Premier League.
updated 10:43 AM EST, Wed January 30, 2013
The death of 73 football fans in Port Said tragedy continues to haunt Egypt.
ADVERTISEMENT