Rafael Benitez can guide Real Madrid to La Liga glory next season, according to Sevilla counterpart Unai Emery.

Los Blancos finished second to Barcelona last season and also missed out on the Copa del Rey and Champions League titles, which resulted in Carlo Ancelotti’s sacking as coach.

Emery feels Benitez, who won the La Liga title twice as Valencia boss, will guide Real to silverware next season and the Sevilla coach thinks the Madrid side could wrestle the Spanish crown away from Barca.

“I believe that Benitez’s arrival at Madrid is the rightful recognition of his good work down the years,” he told Corriere dello Sport.

“They’re candidates to win La Liga because Benitez is coach of Madrid. If they don’t succeed it’s because Barcelona win but when Madrid go several years without winning La Liga, you know something’s not right.

“Barca and Madrid are the best in world. When you add technical success to this, it’s a winning formula.”

Real secured the Champions League in the 2013-14 campaign but they have not managed to win La Liga since the 2011-12 season, when Jose Mourinho was in charge of the Bernabeu outfit.

Benitez won trophies during his spells in charge of Liverpool, Inter Milan, Chelsea and Napoli – but he hasn’t won a league title since his success with Los Che in the 2003-04 season in Spain.

Real are 2.40 to win the La Liga title outright in 2015-16 and Barcelona are 1.67.

Emery’s Sevilla are 51.00 to take the title and Atletico Madrid are available at 17.00.