Different sensations but a new negative result. Sampaoli's debut brought some fire to Sevilla, who managed to get ahead after a promising start, but it faded as the minutes went by and they ended up as prey against a much more incisive Athletic in the final stretch.
goals
1-0 Oliver Torres (3′), 1-1 Mikel Vesga (72′)
- Referee: Jesus Gil Manzano
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Francisco Román Alarcón Suárez (37'), Alex Nicolao Telles (38'), José Ángel Carmona (57'), Marcos Acuña (71'), Ander Herrera (91')
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Ander Herrera (94')
Sampaoli kick to the hornet's nest. The Argentine, on his return to the Sevilla bench, chose to shake the eleven in search of some response, forcing the coach to air the vicious atmosphere generated in Lopetegui's last days in charge of the team. Dmitrovic took over the starting goalkeeping position due to Bono's inconvenience and, at last, Marcao made his debut in the center of defence, the Brazilian having been injured since arriving last summer as a substitute for Diego Carlos. The most surprising novelty, the permanence of Óliver Torres in midfield, who until now had had a very irregular role in the Andalusian club (he is not even registered in the Champions League). It didn't take 5 minutes for Pizjuán to implode.
It was Torres who laid the first stone of Sampaoli's new Seville. After a good combination between Papu and Montiel on the right wing, and a slight touch from Dolberg in the area, the midfielder came from the second line and scored the first for the Andalusians. Seville ecstasy after a few months of darkness. The locals showed an intensity that seemed lost, irretrievable, and Papu, from the right wing, was in charge of pressing the detonator. Athletic was knocked out and couldn't even get a decent possession. Meanwhile, Sampaoli, oblivious to the happiness of his fans, walked around the band, wrapped in tattoos and with the attitude of a prison guard. His trance was so intense that he even bumped into the linesman on occasion.
After the volcanic start, the game took some rest. The Basques began to stretch thanks to the Williams brothers and Berenguer had the tie in their boots after a good cross shot, although the Andalusians were the bosses of the confrontation, famished in the divided balls and driven by a crowd that protested and celebrated in each and every action. Only Nico, an ambidextrous dribbling thoroughbred, intimidated the locals with his diabolical dances from the left flank, while Unai Simón, in great trouble, intimidated the Andalusians' income from not being extended before the break. Good management of the match by Sevilla after the first 45 minutes, explosive at the beginning and devious at the knot.
After the restart, Sampaoli's pupils continued with their leader's plan. They risked, perhaps too much. During the ball out, they directed all the attacks towards Papu's right wing, the Argentine striker very in tune in his decision-making. In addition, and faced with the inability to weave plays through the center, Athletic, who perceived certain doubts in Dmitrovic, began to bombard the Andalusian area with crosses and distant shots in search of the goddess fortune giving them a smile. The Basques grew in the game, the possibility of a tie was real, and faced with the threat, the Sevilla coach opted to reinforce the left wing with the bull Acuña and with José Ángel, a sort of double winger who sent Telles, left winger, in the center of the field. Sampaoli built on strength before the final assault.
It was not very successful because, after a general mistake by the local defense, Nico Williams was about to score the tie, the clearest for Valverde's men, who based on arreones were pushing their rivals back, forced to the crudest of survivals in the last leg of the match. With the duel somewhat broken, and when it seemed that Athletic ran out of ideas, Vesga, after a rejection from the front, made the tie disappear with a beautiful and precise shot to the right of Dmitrovic. Those from Bilbao, who had several chances to score the second, put a stop to the euphoria, bringing the Sevilla fans back to the difficult reality they are experiencing this season. At times the staging improved, but the result was the same again.
