Luis Suárez's tears of joy as Atleti secure LaLiga title
Two thousand Atlético Madrid fans celebrated outside an empty stadium and inside a teary-eyed Diego Simeone walks across the pitch at the Jose Zorilla stadium and consoles Valladolid defender Kiko Olivas with the player desolate on the turf. It was an admirable gesture from the victor with the fallen. The Argentine coach then joined his players and back room staff to pose for celebration photos after an extremely hard-fought league title with Real Madrid pushing Atleti all the way. Simeone's men are worthy champions in a tough season for everyone: a demanding fixture list, travel bubbles, no post game showers and all under the cloud of the coronavirus.
Post game emotions
The winning side then carried out post-game media duty and it was obvious that Luis Suárez was finding the occasion hugely emotional possibly recalling the outset to his season and the manner in which his move from Barça, where he felt at home to Atleti was conducted. The Uruguayan striker has found a niche in the Spanish capital and has slotted perfectly into Cholo's team and set-up. Simeone himself spoke to the media and was visibly delighted and relieved to have secured the title. The Argentine coach refused to talk about himself, preferring to praise the club, the fans, those on the board of directors and especially his players.
Last day drama
In the other key game of the afternoon, Real Madrid kept their part of the bargain in securing three points against Villarreal despite trailing for the bulk of the game. The scoreline sends the side from Castellon into the new UEFA Conference League unless they can muster a win next Wednesday in Gdansk where they face Man.United in the Europa League final. A victory would see Spain with five Champions League participants next season. Real Sociedad and Real Betis qualified for the Europa League with Elche managing to secure top flight football next season with Pacheta's Huesca failing to get the result they needed over Valencia. This has been an odd season with no fans present but at the same time nothing can be taken away from the level of drama that went right to the wire.