Why aren’t Real Madrid, Barcelona and LaLiga playing this weekend?

Real Madrid and Barcelona will go into the first legs of next week’s Champions League quarter-final against Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain in the unusual position of having had over a week off, with no LaLiga fixtures scheduled for this coming weekend (Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 April).

Copa del Rey final takes centre stage in Spain: when does LaLiga start again?

As is now traditionally the case in Spain, all eyes will be on the the Copa del Rey final on Saturday, as Athletic Club and Mallorca face off in the final at La Cartuja in Seville. Madrid were eliminated from the competition, which they won in 2022/23, in the round of 16 by Atlético Madrid, while the Catalans lost to Athletic in the quarter-finals.

LaLiga will resume with matchday 31 on Friday 12 April, with Los Blancos next in action in Mallorca and Barça travelling to Cádiz, both the following Saturday.

That means Madrid will have had nine days off before the start of their UCL last eight tie against Manchester City, while Barcelona will have had an 11-day break ahead of facing PSG.

Real Madrid last played against Athletic Club on Sunday 31 March, with their match-up against City kicking off at the Bernabéu on Tuesday 9 April. Barça, meanwhile, defeated Las Palmas in their last fixture on Saturday 30 March and won’t face Kylian Mbappé and Co at the Parc des Princes until Wednesday 10 April.

City and PSG’s busy schedules before the Champions League quarter-finals

Before Manchester City’s Premier League draw against Arsenal last Sunday (31 March), head coach Pep Guardiola lamented the hand he had been dealt by the fixture calendar compared to his upcoming European opponents.

“Madrid have nine days to prepare for our game. Nine days! They play this (last) weekend and then not again until our game – while I am thinking, ‘Oh, just give me one more day!’ With one more day the difference is a lot – but there is no chance. That’s why, when you ask me about changes to the calendar, I give my opinion – but forget about it.”

The reigning Champions League holders will have played two additional games in that time (Wednesday’s 4-1 home win over Aston Villa and Saturday’s match at Crystal Palace), while PSG will also have been in action twice since Barcelona’s last outing (Saturday’s Ligue 1 fixture against Clermont follows a French Cup victory over Rennes on Wednesday).