LALIGA
What do Real Madrid need to be crowned LaLiga champions today?
The permutations couldn’t be more straightforward for Ancelotti’s team - they need four points. Cibeles is ready if Barça stumble at Montilivi this evening.
The calculators are out for Week 34 of LaLiga. Today, Real Madrid have the first match ball to be crowned league champions and clinch their 36th title. However, even though Carlo Ancelotti’s team have a commanding, almost unassailable lead at the top of the table, they still don’t depend on themselves.
Madrid must beat Cádiz
First of all, Los Blancos must make sure that they beat Cádiz at the Bernabéu this afternoon. If they manage that, they then have to wait to see how Barcelona gets on against Girona later this evening. Were Xavi Hernández’s men to fail to defeat their fellow Catalans, Madrid would be confirmed as champions. A draw at the Bernabéu would rule out the possibility of winning the title today, as any result in Montilivi would mathematically maintain the chances that either Girona or Barça could still catch up with Madrid.
LaLiga EA Sports 2023/2024
| Classification | PTS | WM | TM | LM |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Real Madrid Club de Fútbol | 84 | 26 | 6 | 1 |
| 2Barcelona | 73 | 22 | 7 | 4 |
| 3Girona | 71 | 22 | 5 | 6 |
| Upcoming matches | |
|---|---|
| Real Madrid Club de Fútbol - Cádiz | S-04/05 10:15 |
| Granada - Real Madrid Club de Fútbol | S-11/05 12:30 |
| Real Madrid Club de Fútbol - Alavés | T-14/05 15:30 |
*Data updated to date Apr 29th, 2024
Real Madrid's remaining games in LaLiga 2023-4
- Real Madrid vs Cádiz
- Granada vs Real Madrid
- Real Madrid vs Alavés
- Villarreal vs Real Madrid
- Real Madrid vs Betis
Barcelona's remaining games in LaLiga 2023-4
- Girona vs Barcelona
- Barcelona vs Real Sociedad
- Almería vs Barcelona
- Barcelona vs Rayo Vallecano
- Sevilla vs Barcelona
Real Madrid thinking ahead to Bayern game, not Cibeles
Whatever happens, there will be no official celebration of the title and the team will not go to Cibeles tonight - even though the city council has barriers in place and security prepared in case some fans show up. The club has ruled out a celebratory bus tour down the Castellana today as the team does not depend on itself. That decision was also conditioned by the imminent Champions League semi-final return leg against Bayern, which is just a few days away (Wednesday at the Bernabéu).
Two years ago, in similar circumstances (also in Week 34), Madrid did celebrate winning the title four days after hosting Manchester City. The difference then was that Madrid did actually depend on itself to win the title in advance. All they needed to do was beat Espanyol at home, which they did (4-0 with a double from Rodrygo and goals from Asensio and Benzema).
On top of that, it was an earlier kick-off (2 p.m.) The team received the league trophy on the Bernabéu pitch and left by bus to celebrate the title with the fans at Cibeles. By 10 p.m. the players were already back at the stadium to conclude the celebrations.
Today, that whole process would be delayed by more than two hours - and that’s not ideal with a crucial Champions League game coming up and a golden opportunity to book a place in the final..
Yet the fact that the players won’t be heading down to Cibeles doesn’t mean that there will not be a popular celebration if Madrid wins league number 36 today. The Madrid City Council, through their Security and Emergency Department, have preparations in place if Ancelotti’s team win the title today. Cibeles will be fenced to prevent fans from climbing into the fountain. More than 100 Municipal Police officers, in addition to members of the Samur-Civil Protection will be on duty to ensure security.
Madrid’s options to win the title
If it does not happen this afternoon, Madrid won;lt have to wait too long to have LaLiga in the bag. The team needs just four points to be champions. If they win this afternoon, they would need only a draw from next week’s trip to Granada (Saturday 11th: 12:30 p.m. ET) or the following game against Alavés at the Bernabéu (Tuesday 14th: 3:30 p.m. ET).
In some ways, that would be the ideal moment to party with the fans, because the following day is a regional holiday - the capital will have a day off on 15 May to honor San Isidro, the city’s patron saint.
After that there will still be one more home game, Real Madrid host Betis on the final day (Saturday the 25th or Sunday the 26th). It’s a question of when not if, and Real Madrid have plenty of options to celebrate when it finally happens.