Sevilla 0-0 Deportivo Alaves result, stats and report

Sevilla 0-0 Deportivo Alaves. Write it down. Look at it. Neither side deserved more than that, and in a funny way, neither side deserved even that much.

The thing is, this match had a moment that should have settled it. Rubén Vargas stepped up to take a penalty in the 32nd minute. He missed it. That is the story. Everything else is detail.

Alaves Had the Tools. They Did Not Use Them.

Let us look at the numbers plainly. Alaves finished with 60 per cent of the ball, 391 passes to Sevilla's 262, and 13 total shots to Sevilla's nine. They had 56 dangerous attacks to Sevilla's 26. On the basics of competing for the match, Alaves were the better side by a distance. And they went home with nothing.

Listen, possession means nothing if you cannot put the ball in the net. Alaves had three shots on target from 13 total. They had a penalty. They missed the penalty. Rubén Vargas was then substituted off at the 59th minute, replaced by Chidera Ejuke. You do not need me to explain what that substitution communicated.

Their pass accuracy sat at 75 per cent. Sevilla's was 61 per cent. Alaves moved the ball better, controlled the tempo, and created more. Accountability demands we ask why that translated to nothing on the scoresheet. The answer is simple. When the moment arrived, they did not execute the basics. End of.

Sevilla Were Ragged and Fortunate

Sevilla came into this match in poor form across five La Liga matches. One win, one draw, three losses, thirteen goals conceded. That is not a team with its defensive standards in order. That is a team in trouble.

On the night, Sevilla picked up three yellow cards. Pablo Ibáñez was booked in the 30th minute after an argument. Toni Martínez followed in the 63rd minute for a foul, and Nicolás Valentini was booked just one minute later, also for a foul. Four yellows across the two sides, 19 fouls committed by Sevilla alone. That is a side under pressure, fouling to stay in the match, playing on the edge.

Their manager threw on five substitutes and reshuffled twice at the 60-minute mark, bringing in Carlos Protesoni and Abde Rebbach. Then Mariano Díaz came on at the 74th minute when Toni Martínez, already on a yellow, was pulled. The final double change at 85 minutes brought Aitor Mañas and Jonny Otto into the picture. That is a lot of movement for a team trying to protect a 0-0.

The thing is, Sevilla's goalkeeper was not exactly under siege. Two saves, same as his opposite number. But Alaves had four shots blocked and six off target. Sevilla were disorganised, yes. They were also fortunate. Those two things can both be true.

The Penalty That Was Not Taken Properly

It needs saying again because it is the pivotal moment. Alaves won a penalty. That is an enormous opportunity in a match where chances were not exactly flying in. Rubén Vargas stepped up in the 32nd minute and missed.

In a match where Alaves had the better of everything, that penalty represented the clearest route to three points. When you do not take that, you do not get to complain about the result. The desire has to show up most when the pressure is highest. That is what separates winning teams from teams that draw 0-0 with a Sevilla side that has lost three of their last five in La Liga.

Cards, Arguments, and Chaos in the Middle

The match was not a clean, controlled contest. It was scrappy. It had an argument at the half hour mark. It had a card in the 64th minute for a foul committed one minute after another foul earned a card. Sevilla's discipline was poor. Nineteen fouls in a 0-0 is unacceptable. That is a side that cannot impose itself technically, so it resorts to stopping the opposition by other means.

Alaves picked up a card of their own, Arouna Sangante booked for a foul in the 47th minute, and he was subsequently replaced at the 74th minute by Andrés Castrín. The yellow clearly affected his availability for the closing stages of the match.

Alaves also registered 15 interceptions to Sevilla's eight, and 22 tackles to Sevilla's 20. They were competitive. They competed. The attitude was not the problem. The execution of the basics in the final third was the problem.

What This Result Means

For Sevilla, a point at home against a side without a win in five La Liga matches is nothing to celebrate. Sevilla have conceded thirteen goals in five matches coming into this. They kept a clean sheet tonight, and that is worth acknowledging. But only just. They were fortunate the penalty went begging. They were fortunate Alaves could not convert their pressure into goals despite having every statistical advantage on the night.

For Alaves, this is a 0-0 against a Sevilla side that lost to Getafe one week earlier. Alaves have not won in five La Liga matches. They had the ball, they had the shots, they had the penalty, and they drew 0-0. That is a problem of standards, not effort.

Both sides leave this match with one point. Neither should feel satisfied. Alaves had the opportunity to put this to bed and did not take it. Sevilla needed something to hold onto and found a goalkeeper and some misfortune to protect them.

Football is a results business. That means you turn your chances into goals. Neither side did that. The scoreline is fair, and it is damning for both of them.