With just 10 matchdays remaining in this LALIGA EA SPORTS season, the title race reaches another dimension. There is no margin left for error as FC Barcelona and Real Madrid battle it out for the championship, with just four points separating the top two. This weekend, they each have home games against opposition from Madrid, with Barça hosting Rayo Vallecano and Real Madrid meeting Atlético de Madrid in a derby.
The matchday gets underway on Friday night with another mouth-watering tie, as Villarreal CF take on Real Sociedad at the Estadio de la Cerámica. With these two clubs currently fourth and seventh in the table, this is a top-quality duel and one with major implications for the European race. It should be the perfect way to get this weekend of LALIGA EA SPORTS action up and running.
The focus remains on the Valencian Community with the first of Saturday’s games taking place at Elche CF’s Estadio Martínez Valero. The home side have been on a terrible run of late and just dropped inside the relegation zone, so their clash against 16th-placed RCD Mallorca is a true six-pointer in the relegation battle.
RCD Espanyol vs Getafe CF is next up, and these two clubs will be giving everything they’ve got as they aim to keep their dreams of European qualification alive. Currently eighth and ninth, respectively, Los Pericos and Los Azulones are just outside the UEFA spots but know that continental football remains a possibility.
The bottom two teams, Levante UD and Real Oviedo, face off in what is something of a must-win match if they want to fight for survival in the final weeks of the season. Both sides have improved of late, with Levante UD collecting five points from their past three matches and Real Oviedo accumulating four points, but time is running out and nothing less than three points will do for these two fanbases.
Matches between clubs sitting close together in the table is something of a theme of this weekend, as there is another one in Pamplona on Saturday evening between 11th-placed CA Osasuna and 12th-placed Girona FC, then another in Andalusia between 15th-placed Sevilla FC and 14th-placed Valencia CF.
Four more fixtures follow on Sunday, starting with FC Barcelona vs Rayo Vallecano at the Spotify Camp Nou. Their previous meeting this season finished as a 1-1 draw in Vallecas, so Barça know they’ll need to be alert against Iñigo Pérez’s charges. But, after scoring seven goals at home against Newcastle United in midweek, Hansi Flick’s men will enter this game full of confidence.
Quique Sánchez Flores’ Deportivo Alavés are in action next, and the new coach is still searching for his first win with the Basque club. This Sunday they pay a visit to RC Celta, and the pressure is on for El Glorioso given that they sit just one place above the relegation zone.
Two of Spain’s most historic clubs square off next, as Athletic Club welcome Real Betis to San Mamés. Their past few encounters have been highly entertaining, with both teams scoring in each of their past five meetings, including a 2-1 Athletic Club victory in Seville earlier this campaign.
Then, at 21:00 CET on Sunday night, it’s time for the second ELDERBI DE MADRID of this LALIGA EA SPORTS season. After Atleti won 5-2 back in September, Real Madrid will be desperate to take the three points this time. However, Los Blancos haven’t tasted victory in any of the past six league derbies, losing two and drawing four in that run over the past three and a half years. Backed by their fans at the Bernabéu, and needing points for their title hopes too, Álvaro Arbeloa’s side will give all they’ve got in what is the final LALIGA EA SPORTS fixture before the March international break.
