Real Madrid assistant coach Aitor Karanka paid tribute to the players after victory over Sevilla.

Real are now a step closer to winning the title as they sit seven points clear of second placed Barcelona.

"It's obviously important to win the Spanish league for everything it entails and for how hard we've worked for it. The sooner we win, the better. It would be nice to win at a great venue like San Mames against Athletic Bilbao because they are having a great season. We're all only thinking about winning the game we need to celebrate as soon as possible," said Karanka.

"We only have a Plan A here, and we'll stick to it until we take the points we need. We also only had a Plan A last season under different circumstances, so it focused on scoring more goals and helping Cristiano increase his tally.

"Winning La Liga is the objective of every team. Winning such a demanding league championship, which has so many games, is more than important.

"Our men are in fantastic form and we know how tired they are. The exhaustion they had after facing Barcelona and Bayern in such a short time is eclipsed by their confidence. They performed very well on Saturday and made a great effort on Wednesday, so today's clash was sort of like a reward. What matters is the mentality, character and drive they all have to take three points in every game."