Real Madrid matchwinner Luka Modric paid tribute to Sergio Ramos after victory over Sevilla.

Ramos was returning with Sevilla for the first time since leaving Real two years ago.

Modric scored the only goal on Sunday and later said: "It was a very difficult match. Sevilla didn't make it easy for us, but we got the win in the end and that's all that matters. Winning in this way gives us a bit more satisfaction, even though we could have got the goals earlier. I'm happy to have contributed the goal. We have to keep going.

"Our persistence. We never stopped, we continued to push forward and we created a lot of chances. We knew we couldn't let the three points slip away. Barcelona were getting close and we couldn't allow that to happen. It paid off in the end, they're three very important points in this campaign.

"We showed that we kept going until the end and that we never gave up. We've shown it many times before, it's the Real Madrid genes. We'd like to have wrapped it up sooner, but sometimes it's the way it goes."

On Ramos, he also said: "He's my friend, my brother. He's a great player and he continues to demonstrate that. Despite the fact that everyone wants to talk about our age, he continues to show that he's playing at a very high level. It's been a joy to watch him.

"He had a great game today and he's very happy and excited to be back at the Bernabéu. The fans were also happy to see him, although today on the other side. He's a legend, a great of world football and above all of Real Madrid."