Benzema set to lead as Bale aims to please

Real Madrid have the chance to move four points clear at the top of the La Liga Wednesday night when they entertain Sevilla FC at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium here.

The game was postponed from December as a result of Real Madrid's participation in the World Club Championship held in Morocco, said Xinhua.

Carlo Ancelotti's side starts the match without the suspended Cristiano Ronaldo, who is serving the second of a two-game suspension, but on the back of four wins in the league, the last of which was a 4-1 cruise past Real Sociedad Saturday.

That game saw Karim Benzema step up to the plate with two goals, but it also saw Gareth Bale, who was the player many looked towards to fill the breach left by Ronaldo, booed by a section of the fans.

The Welshman, who cost 100 million euros, missed clear chances to score in the game.

Although he set up Benzema's first goal of the afternoon, many will take away the memory of him barging James Rodriguez out of the way before missing a clear chance to score.

Bale had previously been accused of selfishness twice this year, both times for opting to shoot rather than passing to a team-mate.

Bale's incident with James was almost certainly the result of his desire to score and thus gain confidence but seems to have had the opposite effect. He will need a good start Wednesday.

Sevilla meanwhile travel to Madrid in excellent form after defeating Espanyol Sunday.

Unai Emery's side possesses the firepower to hurt Madrid with strikers Kevin Gameiro and Carlos Bacca. But sometimes coach Unai Emery tends to be conservative when his team plays away to big sides, and that conservatism gets transmitted to his players.

Sevilla have lost heavily in the Camp Nou this season and will need to do better if they are to avoid defeat in the Bernabeu, just three days ahead of the Madrid derby.