Julen Lopetegui has described football as being like a “melon” and claims there is no extra motivation to beat his former team Real Madrid.

Former Los Blancos boss Lopetegui is now in charge at Sevilla and they host Zinedine Zidane’s side on Sunday. It will be Lopetegui’s first game against his former club after being sacked as Real manager last season.

It was a messy few months for Lopetegui who arrived after being dismissed by Spain just two days before the start of the 2018 World Cup, due to him signing a deal to take over the Madrid giants on the eve of the tournament. However, he only managed the club for four-and-a-half months before being replaced in October.

The 53-year-old has found some sort of stability in the Andalusian capital, with Sevilla undefeated in La Liga with three victories and one draw this season.

On Sevilla being favourites to win the game, Lopetegui said: “You are the ones who are making the headlines. If I would be giving me a goal or a point, I would be happy to do it, but that’s not the case.

“The football matches are like a melon. You don’t know how sweet they are until you try them. So, we will have to give our best tomorrow. There’s no point on talking about expectations in a game against Real Madrid. They are a great team and we are too.”

Last time Real won at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan was back in 2015. Since then Sevilla have won the four ensuing encounters.