What’s gone wrong with Pablo Machin’s Sevilla?

Were you to have taken a glance at the La Liga table in late 2018, you’d have been very impressed. Sevilla were flying high, making a really impressive impact on the title race. Alongside Atletico Madrid, they looked by far the most likely to knock Barcelona off of top spot. However, the turn of the year has brought about a failing for more than a few clubs – including Sevilla.

Sevilla and Machin: a match made in heaven

The impressive Pablo Machin looked to be the perfect fit for the Andalusian side when he took over. His aggressive, effervescent football was impressing. The return to form of the likes of Ever Banega, Wissam Ben Yedder, and the great run of form from Andre Silva felt perfect. He was even getting a huge amount from Jesus Navas, returning to the club with little expectation.

However, it’s hard to say exactly where the problems begin and end with Sevilla. For one, they are far too attack-minded. While everyone wants to see their side come forward, it’s not often a good idea to do it all the time. While he’s got immense attacking quality at his disposal, many of the offensive players have failed to make an impact.

Ben Yedder and Silva have done well, but the poor form of Franco Vazquez has continued into 2019. So, too, has the drop-off from the likes of Quincy Promes. Signed to much fanfare in the summer, in league terms he’s done very little to establish himself.

Defensively, too, they are a bit of a mess. While young Maximilian Wober was signed with much expectation, he’s done comparatively little since he arrived – with a meagre five league games so far. The stalwart Daniel Carrico has done his best, but he’s always had his limitations. Alongside Simon Kjaer, there’s often been a sieve-like nature to the way that Sevilla defend.

Can Sevilla stop the rot?

To be honest, it’s hard to see that happening. A poor 2-2 draw at home to Sparta Prague will have done nothing to boost confidence – even in a competition that Sevilla traditionally do so well in. An oddly assembled squad, constant changes to the squad selection and an extremely tired looking side – that’s a shockingly poor combination.

For Machin, too, he has to take some of the blame. Although the Sevilla season started away back at the early UEFA Europa League qualifiers, they simply look completely shattered. There’s a real inability to maintain any kind of pressure, and once reliable players look out on their feet.

It really is quite hard to see where the positivity will come from for Sevilla. Since the turn of the year, they have managed to lose a shocking eight times – that’s nowhere near good enough for this kind of club. If the club sticks with Machin, then it’s obvious that something needs to be done with their in-game conditioning and game management.

For such an exciting squad, results and performances are simply not good enough. At present, this looks like a dead season for Sevilla: even qualifying for Europe, given their form, would be impressive.

Featured image by Miguelazo84 [CC BY-SA 4.0], via Wikimedia Commons