The Sevilla won 4-2 to a Granada who never gave up and is entrenched in the Champions League positions after a hard-fought comeback that Diego Carlos promoted by tying 1-1 in the first half, then Lucas Ocampos continued with the 2-1 and, although Víctor Díaz equalized, Rafa Mir and Papu Gómez certified in added time.
After a first half of clear Sevilla dominance, the Venezuelan Darwin Machís, in an isolated attack in the middle of this period, put Granada ahead, although the Brazilian Diego Carlos neutralized his goal shortly after and, already in the second, the Argentine Ocampos came back with suspense, after validating his goal the VAR, and although Granada equaled two, Mir and the Argentine Papu Gómez tied the victory in minutes 93 and 99.
Two needy teams were measured, although for very different objectives: Sevilla, after four games without winning (3 draws and a defeat last day at the Camp Nou) to strengthen their position as ‘Champions’; and Granada, with a single win in the last 12 games, to gain peace of mind by moving away from the relegation zone.
The Sevilla coach Julen Lopetegui, introduced three changes Compared to the eleven of the last defeat against Barcelona (1-0), with the Mexican midfielder Jesús ‘Tecatito’ Corona, the Moroccan striker Youssef En-Nesyri and the Swedish left-back Ludwig Augustinsson, for the Serbian Gudelj, the Argentine Erik Lamela and the Dutchman Rekik, the latter injured.
In Granada, the coach Rubén Torrecilla presented five novelties regarding the last draw at home against Rayo (2-2), with the Albanian full-back Uzuni, the central defenders Víctor Díaz and Raúl Torrente -who was injured and was substituted in the fourth hour by Germán Sánchez-, the Cameroonian midfielder Yan Eteki and the Venezuelan attacker Darwin Machís as the main squire of the Colombian Luis Suárez in the lead.
Sevilla started with intensity this transcendental Andalusian duelfor different reasons, for both of them, but he always lacked clarity, finishing touches and perhaps more ambition, since given Granada’s good disposition, very disciplined but not very incisive, he controlled the game, playing and playing, although without any danger.
The first half was clearly dominated by the Sevillealthough they lacked a further step in attack to really put a spartan rojiblanco team in trouble, sober and firm, without giving anything to their rival in defense and who, moreover, was very effective in their first clear scoring chance.
Thus, the Venezuelan Darwin Machís, in an isolated attack in the middle of this period, put Granada ahead by scoring, after stealing the ball on dangerous terrain, a good goal with the inside of the right foot at 23 minutes.
However, Sevilla, despite their traffic jam and lack of ideas in attack, found the reward for their insistence and their harassment against the Granada area shortly after half an hour and made it 1-1 through Brazilian defender Diego Carlos Santoswho headed a magnificent cross from the right by Jesús Navas.
The Sevilla captain was the most incisive with his incursions down the right of his team, lacking in ideas and, although he controlled, he was unable to transfer his supremacy to the scoreboard despite a lob shot by Navas that the Portuguese Maximiano cleared for a corner, after Suárez headed it was a cross from Milla.
After the restart, the rhythm of the clash changed, it was more lively. Sevilla accelerated and, although Granada never gave up and Suárez looked for the goal in the 62nd minute in a shot that the Moroccan Bono, always very successful, sent to a corner, Lopetegui’s men pressed and They found a prize at 67 minutes with a goal from Argentine Lucas Ocampos.
This 2-1 came with suspense, in an action by Tecatito Corona who gave Ocampos from the left to dribble Maximiano on his way out and manage to beat him, although in the first instance the goal was not conceded due to a possible offside by the Mexican. although, after intervening the VAR, he gave it validity.
Sevilla continued at his pace and, with the changes, especially with the entry of an active Rafa Mir, he was more upright. The Murcian had a goal annulled in minute 76 due to a previous foul on Germán against an increasingly ambitious Granada, which had already warned with a shot from Albanian Myrto Uzuni that crashed into Bono’s left post.
The Uruguayan Arezo also tried it in minute 88, but ran into the Moroccan goalkeeper, until that same minute the former sevillista Víctor Díaz achieved the 2-2 two minutes from the regulation 90 when heading a corner taken by a talented Luis Milla.
However, Lopetegui’s men threw themselves into it, went for it all and found the prize for their best game and greatest ambition. They made it clear that they needed to win and they achieved it with the goals in the 9 minutes of extension decreed by the referee of Mir, by clinching a header by Rakitic, and by Papu Gómez, by taking advantage of a good cross from Óliver Torres.
Datasheet:
4 – Sevilla: Bond; Jesús Navas, Koundé, Diego Carlos (Gudelj, m.79), Augustinsson; Jordan, Rakitic; Ocampos (Rafa Mir, m.68), Martial (Papu Gómez, m.68), Tecatito Corona (Óliver Torres, m.83); En-Nesyri (Lamela, m.46).
2 – Granada: Maximian; Uzuni, Víctor Díaz, Domingos Duarte (Quini, m.72), Raúl Torrente (Germán, m.16), Escudero (Molina, m.83); Petrovic, Luis Milla, Yan Eteki (Soro, m.83), Machís (Arezo, m.72); Louis Suarez.
Goals: 0-1, M.23: Machís. 1-1, M.32: Diego Carlos. 2-1, M.67: Ocampos. 2-2, M.88: Victor Diaz. 3-2, M.93: Rafa Mir. 4-2, m.99: Papu Gómez.
Referee: Miguel Ángel Ortiz Arias (Madrid Committee). He admonished the locals Jordán (m.57) and Rafa Mir (m.78), and the visitors Yan Eteki (m.42) and Luis Suárez (m.77).
Incidents: Match from the thirty-first day of LaLiga Santander played at the Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán in front of 33,504 spectators, including half a thousand fans from Granada.
