A hard-fought title race came down to the final day. Real Madrid beat Villarreal 2-1 at Valdebebas this evening while Atletico Madrid won at Real Valladolid, taking the title. If Atletico had dropped points, Madrid would have won La Liga.
It’s been a crazy season. Atletico were running away with the title before Christmas, only to fall back to earth afterwards. Madrid and Barcelona were in utter crisis for the first half of the season, only to get their act together in the second half. Barcelona have imploded on the final stretch, but Madrid have kept pace.
Madrid were two points behind Atletico heading into the final day, five clear of Barcelona and seven clear of Sevilla. Villarreal were also fighting for something; they wanted Europe and sat seventh, just outside of the Europa League places, but defeat means they’ll have to settle for a spot in the European Conference League.
Villarreal took the lead in the 20th minute, Yeremi Pino providing the first blow. Madrid thought they’d drawn level through Karim Benzema in the 55th, only for VAR to rule the goal out retrospectively, but really did take the lead in the 87th when the Frenchman scored legally. But Atletico’s win at Valladolid ultimately meant that it counted for little.