That's the end of 2018-19 La Liga.
Having returned to top flight last summer,
Rayo Vallecano and
Huesca are going down to Segunda straight away. They had a late push of some decent results, but by then it was too late.
Sadly, our Catalan neighbors
Girona are the ones to join them. Actually one of the better teams on the road, their comeback win at the Bernabeu being their highlight, but their home record was abysmal, with only 3 wins and 15 points. A catastrophic ending to the season saw them eventually drop to 18th place. Their star striker Stuani continued with fine form, being the 5th best goalscorer with 19 goals but all of his teammates combined couldn't match that total.
One of the clubs that narrowly avoided relegation are
Celta Vigo, who looked in a lot of trouble a couple of months ago, but their captain Iago Aspas has inspired them to a strong finish once he came back from an injury, scoring a lot of crucial goals in the last several matchdays. With 20 goals, he is the best Spanish goalscorer in La Liga for a third consecutive season, while his tally this time is 4th best overall.
The other are
Villarreal, who spent majority of the season in the relegation zone, and despite also being on the receiving end of recent big comebacks from Celta and Barcelona, they recovered in time with the quality of some well known players in Cazorla, Bacca and Moreno giving them a much needed push to remain in La Liga.
Real Valladolid, who were bought by Ronaldo in the summer when they were promoted, have had their difficulties throughout the season despite a strong start. They were the worst attacking team in the entire league, but an impressive total of 10 wins, all of them being by a one goal margin, earned them safety with one game to go.
The midtable teams who never looked like pushing for European qualification or in big danger to go down are
Levante,
Leganes and
Eibar, and this has been their state for a while now. They are capable of great performances against the best, with Leganes registering a comeback win over Barcelona while Eibar recorded a convincing win over Real Madrid, but that's where the story ends as, unfortunately for them, league values consistency more than anything else.
Shockingly, the lower middle of the table is completed by
Deportivo Alaves. Managed by Abelardo, they were having a dream season, being among the best teams in the first months of this campaign while still being in the Champions League places all the way until spring. However, a lack of a star striker, as none of their players hit double digit number of goals, was always going to make the finishing more difficult for them, and an incredibly poor form in the end saw them slip to 11th place, without any European football.
Real Betis weren't as good as last year as this time they only finished in 10th and without Europe, but they have enjoyed themselves once again. For the first time in their history, they have won at both Camp Nou and Santiago Bernabeu in the same season. Quique Setien, a big lover of high pressure and total football, will go down as one of their best managers, and he couldn't have gotten a better sending off as his boys won their final home game as well as their trip at Bernabeu earlier today.
The battle for the last European spot went to the final day in a head to head decider between our city rivals
Espanyol and the Basque club
Real Sociedad. And I have to admit that Espanyol totally deserved that spot. Having a strong first half to the season, led by Rosales in attack, at one point being 2nd just behind us, and they recovered from their awful slumps to win their last three games, including a dominant win over Atletico and yesterday's triumph against Sociedad. Espanyol also needed Sociedad's city rivals
Athletic Bilbao to lose away to Sevilla, which happened. Despite missing out on Europe, Athletic can still take positives, having been in the relegation zone during the winter break and fearing what would have been their first ever drop to lower division.
One of the remaining two Europa League places was earned by
Sevilla, who punched above their weight in the beginning, being top of the table after 13 games, but going back to their usual level quickly after that. However with improving Ben Yedder as well as unselfish Sarabia and young Silva, they have good days to look forward to, as they will have Europa League goal in their minds again.
5th place went to
Getafe. They had Champions League football in their hands, being in that position all season long, Molina and Mata enjoying a great partnership and delivering in equally big amounts, but winning just one of the last five games was costly. Unfortunately our victory over them at Camp Nou was the moment that ruined their chances the most, but nobody will want to remember that game as it was our first after the Champions League fiasco. Anyway, this result means that there won't be three Madrid clubs in the Champions League next season.
A well earned 4th spot and final Champions League place went to
Valencia. Frustrating start, having a lot of trouble scoring, having only two wins at beginning of November and frustrating their home fans with so many draws, having earned a very high total of 16 stalemates in this whole season, their season went upwards. Rodrigo, Parejo, Gameiro and most of their other players improved themselves as season progressed, and they finished the season on a very strong note, playing Europa League semifinals and winning the last three games, earning Champions League football for a second successive season. They will have a chance to make it even better as they are playing Copa del Rey final next weekend.
For the second season in a row, the 3rd best team in La Liga are
Real Madrid. A truly abysmal season for them, as they had to endure the summer departure of their best goalscorer Cristiano and manager Zidane, while not replacing them with anyone of similar quality. Los Blancos went through three managers in less than a year, sacking Lopetegui after their El Clasico humiliation, then sacking Solari one game after their European humiliation, while Zidane's surprising return did not result in a strong, respectable finish to the season. Only 63 goals, only 68 points, 12 defeats, easily the worst season in their modern history, and I will have to be honest and say it was a joy witnessing every minute of it. However, knowing them, a big reaction is expected during the upcoming transfer window.
Just like in 2017-18, although finishing 2nd again,
Atletico Madrid will again take pride in being the best team in their city. Their city rivals' poor form made it easier for them, but they have shown trust in Simeone's approach again, relying on grinding out narrow wins and doing reasonably well against big sides other than Barcelona again. They have had room for improvement as Griezmann had one of his worst drought periods and generally the worst goalscoring season, but that's not their concern now, as they are going into the next season without him, Godin, Lucas and possibly some other players too. A big changing of the squad is coming, as the biggest test of Cholo's managing career is now ahead of him. They will have plenty of money to spend, it's up to them to do that wisely.
And saving the best for last. 2018-19 La Liga has been won by
Barcelona, in same convincing fashion like the previous one. On top of the table on 34/38 match days and never looking back since the 14th game, Blaugrana has confirmed its superiority over the rest of Spain once again, winning 4 of the last 5, and 8 of the last 11 La Liga titles. Apart from a shaky couple of periods in autumn, it's been impressive control of our matches. El Clasico double win, double win over Sevilla, late equalizer away to Atletico, late winners at home against Atletico, best home team in the league, convincingly the best away team in the league, suffering only three defeats with one of them happening after the title was already sealed. Improved defense resulted in less conceded goals, a midfield that had enough options to always try something different if the current plan wasn't working, while having the best player in the world in attack. Leo Messi has finished this La Liga with 36 goals, 15 ahead of his nearest chasers Suarez and Benzema, while also being tied with Sarrabia for most assists with 13. By far the most influential player on the planet today, he has tied the legendary Telmo Zarra with six La Liga seasons as the best goalscorer, a 6th Ballon d'Or is in his sights, while only a last day rampage from Mbappe can prevent him from winning an incredible 3rd consecutive European Golden Shoe and 6th in total.
Congratulations to all domestic champions this season. Enjoy it, as it's a feat to always be very proud of.
8 d' 11 | CAMPIONS | 26 vegades