Arsenal set for Champions League battle against Sevilla and street-fighter Sergio Ramos

It is a brave manager who lets television cameras snoop into his dressing room. Arsenal’s Mikel Arteta was obliged to do so for an All Or Nothing documentary series, which then relayed some of his less orthodox motivation techniques to a sceptical audience.

But Arteta had at least been forewarned. At the weekend, Sevilla’s Diego Alonso found himself ambushed on his debut as a manager in Europe, with the lenses and microphones of La Liga’s broadcasters trailing his team talks during and after the 1-1 draw with Real Madrid.

Alonso, appointed two weeks ago as Sevilla’s fourth different coach in barely two years, emerged from the close-ups and eavesdropping with credit. His instructions ahead of a contest he described as a “street fight”, we rousing, his praise for his “brave” players generous.

On camera, Alonso received a significant endorsement, too, an embrace from the street-fighter supreme, Sevilla’s most worldly warrior, Sergio Ramos.

Against Arteta’s Arsenal, Ramos will on Tuesday make his 140th appearance in the Champions League. Alonso, freshly arrived from South America, will be on the touchline in a Uefa competition for the first time in his career.

Between player and coach lies an imbalance of experience that the new Sevilla manager must handle carefully, maintaining his own authority while gaining from all the know-how available in Ramos and other veterans in his squad.

When Ramos returned this summer to Sevilla, where he had begun his senior professional career more than two decades ago, it was not a move entirely welcomed by supporters. During 16 years at Real Madrid, the demonstrative Ramos made one or two provocative gestures towards Sevilla fans but there is no denying his impact.

But for a fine late save