Sevilla come into this one off the back of a narrow 2-1 friendly win over Ceuta — a result that tells you more about their rust than their roar. That was a pre-season tune-up against lower-league opposition, and while it shows they can find the net, it hardly screams title-challenger. Their recent league form has been patchy at best: a 3-2 win at Villarreal was followed by a 1-0 loss at Celta Vigo, and before that they were beaten at Osasuna and Levante. This is a side that can turn it on against mid-table teams but has a habit of going missing against the big boys. At the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán they’ll have the crowd, but that only counts if the players show up.

Atlético Madrid, meanwhile, are a different beast entirely. Diego Simeone’s men are coming off a World Cup hangover that saw several key players go deep in the tournament — Julián Álvarez, Nahuel Molina, Giuliano Simeone, Álex Baena and Alexander Sørloth were all absent from preseason friendlies, including that 3-1 loss to Manchester City. But that’s exactly the kind of disruption Simeone thrives on. He’ll have them drilled, organised, and ready to grind out results from day one. They opened their La Liga campaign with a win over Málaga at the Metropolitano, and they’re aiming for two from two here. Momentum is with the visitors, even if their star names are still shaking off jet lag.