Sevilla FC defeats Crystal Palace at Comerica Park
In a very competitive match, Crystal Palace and Sevilla saw tremendous support from the fans in Comerica Park. Both teams had great chances on goal during the match and with the score tied 1-1 after full time, Sevilla won the Motor City cup on sudden death penalties. With over 20,000 people in attendance, the atmosphere was electric and the fans were treated to a wonderfully played match. Great weather and tremendous work to convert the baseball diamond to a soccer pitch pleased players and coaches on both teams.
Scroll down and left click photos to see them in full detail.
Sevilla Captain Jesús Navas lifts the Motor City Cup with the Sevilla FC team. This is the first International soccer match at Comerica Park since 2017 and the fans made both teams feel at home.
With the Detroit Tigers playing earlier in the day, engineers worked fast to convert the baseball diamond to a soccer pitch.
Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine “Bono” Bounou warms up for Sevilla. Normally playing in Europe, plenty of Moroccan fans took the opportunity to see Bono play in person.
Moroccan fans showed their support for Sevilla and the popular goalkeeper, Bono.
Sevilla FC star Ivan Rakitić warming up.
Crystal Palace FC Manager Roy Hodgson walks out onto the field for warm ups.
Sevilla captain Jesús Navas prepares to lead his team out of the tunnel for the opening ceremony.
Crystal Palace player Jeffrey Schlupp walks out to begin the opening ceremony.
A wonderful performance of the American National Anthem.
Sevilla FC players during the opening ceremony.
An Eagle is representative of American pride but is also a mascot for Crystal Palace, very fitting.
Right from the kick-off, it was a very physical match. Players like Jordan Ayew and Eberechi Eze played creatively and adventurously, forcing the Sevilla defenders to play strong in order to stop constant pressure from Crystal Palace.
Eberechi Eze forcing Sevilla defenders to commit fouls by being creative on the ball.
Aggressiveness earns Nemanja Gudelj the games first yellow card.
Sevilla’s Ivan Rakitić controlling the mid field. He would go on to create important chances for the Sevillistas.
Crystal Palace FC fans show their support. With over 20,000 people in attendance, the atmosphere was electric during the entire match.
Jordan Ayew continues to play creatively to keep his team on the front foot.
A wonderful run by Jordan Ayew sees him with a fantastic chance on goal.
Bono shuts the door on Ayew with an impressive save. The Moroccan goalkeeper had an phenomenal first half, keeping multiple shots from reaching the back of his net.
Only playing in the first half of the game, Bono made quite the impact. With a wingspan of more than 76 inches, Bono’s ability to make himself big when contesting shots is key to his success.
Eze prepares to take a corner kick as the end of the first half approaches.
A wonderful strike from Ivan Rakitić sees Sevilla take the lead late in the first half!
Although Crystal Palace played the more aggressive football, Sevilla strike first as their defensive resilience earns them a chance that they did not squander. The first half ends 1-0 in Sevilla’s favor.
After a 15 minute break at the half, the teams head back out onto the pitch to decide the victor.
Similar to the first half, both teams came out strong for the second half.
Both teams looked to control the ball early and another important chance is on the horizon.
Argentinian veteran Marcos Acuña goes up to head a ball.
Schlupp and Navas battle to be the first to a ball in the air while the crowd watched in anticipation.
Eze dance through the defense to score the second goal of the game. Sustained pressure sees Crystal Palace even the score to 1-1 as the second half continues.
Crystal Palace players celebrate a wonderful goal with the classic should bump.
Crystal Palace supporters at Comerica Park thoroughly enjoyed the goal by Eze. The eruption of cheers and shouts was the loudest moment of the match. Eze dribbled through multiple Sevilla players and skillfully slid the shot past the the goalkeeper to finish off Crystal Palace’s best chance of the game.
With the score at 1-1, Crystal Palace looked to capitalize on their momentum by keeping the pressure on.
Eze on the attack again, puts the Sevilla defense on the back foot.
Things did get chippy and both teams shoved each other around but nothing serious enough to warrant any bookings for the ref.
Whether a mistake or out of desperation, Gudelj catches the back of Eze’s jersey and drags him down to the ground pending a decision from the referee.
After a small amount of deliberation, the referee decides to issue Gudelj’s second yellow card, upgrading it to a red card. Officially sending him to watch the rest of the game from the sideline as his team plays with 10 men for the rest of the match.
Schlupp smiles after Crystal Palace finds out they would be finishing the game with a man advantage. Despite this fact, Sevilla’s defense remained solid and made it hard for Palace to capitalize on this advantage.
After a couple more chances by Palace, the score at full time is 1-1. Sudden death penalties were in effect to determine who wins the Motor City Cup.
Rakitić steps up and scores the first penalty of the shootout. Sudden Death means the next Crystal Palace player has to convert their penalty to keep their hope alive.
Joachim Andersen steps up and hits the top bar of the goal, missing his penalty chance. Given the Sudden Death format, this ends the game and gives Sevilla the victory.
Even though it is a pre-season friendly match, the excitement of defeating a top tier European team is unmatched. This game will have given both squads something to look forward to in their regular seasons.
Navas carries the Cup to the locker room as Sevilla’s Capitan. Fans stick around in Comerica Park to show their support as both teams do their walk throughs.
Star goalkeeper Bono shows his appreciation for the Moroccan fans that came out to support him. Young and old, the Moroccan fans showed their dedication.