Sevilla show that life goes on after Puerta, Ramos

   Many sides would surely go to pieces in such circumstances.

 These two misfortunes have been suffered by Sevilla in a tempestuous autumn.

 The Andalusian side have clearly been shaken up by both events but are now getting back on track - as Real Madrid found out to their cost on Saturday.

 The Spanish league leaders were beaten by Sevilla even more thoroughly than the 2-0 result suggests.

 The defeat of Real proves that there is life for Sevilla after Antonio Puerta and Juande Ramos.

 Puerta, of course, was the Sevilla and Spain left-back who died on August 28 after suffering several cardiac arrests.

 Ramos was the most successful and popular coach in Sevilla's 102- year history - until he jumped ship 10 days ago to join Tottenham Hotspurs.

 "This has been a really difficult autumn for us," said Sevilla President Jose Maria del Nido after Saturday's win over Real.

 "We have suffered one tragedy and also an act of betrayal. But we are emerging from the tunnel, due to our determination and love of our club."

   One of the key figures in Sevilla re-emergence is new coach Manolo Jimenez.

 Ten days ago, Jimenez - a popular figure at the club because of his no-nonsense displays as left-back in the late 1980s and early '90s - was happy in his job as coach of Sevilla's nursery side.

 Last season, he guided the youngsters of Sevilla Atletico, as the nursery side is known, from the third to the second division, no mean feat at all.

 Jimenez was hoping to be offered the first team job at the end of this season, when Ramos' contract would have expired. Instead, Ramos unilaterally broke his contract, and Jimenez was asked by Del Nido to step into the breach.

 "Juande has done a lot of damage to Sevilla by leaving like he did," Jimenez said Friday. "But we should not forget all the trophies he won for the club."

   Jimenez admitted: "It has been a really difficult challenge to take over this team, without having any first-division coaching experience."

   His October 27 debut on the bench was a convincing 3-0 thrashing of Valencia, which finally gave the "sevillista" fans something to cheer after a torturous autumn.

 On Wednesday, Jimenez' team lost 4-3 at in-form Atletico Madrid, repeating the same kind of defensive mistakes as in the last two months under Ramos. But the good news was that Sevilla were playing with a smile again - and scoring goals freely.

 Saturday's win over Real leaves Sevilla in 10th place in La Liga, but with a still-pending away match against Osasuna, postponed due to Puerta's death.

 Sevilla have made a solid start to their first-ever Champions League campaign. They are in second place in Group H with six points, behind nine-point Arsenal, having won their home matches against Slavia Prague and Steaua Bucharest.

 More importantly, they are finally emerging from the tunnel - and proving that there is indeed life after Puerta and Ramos.

DPA