On a day which saw Barcelona and Real Madrid fans eagerly awaiting the final day results, it was Los Blancos who beat a spirited Malaga in a hard fought victory to secure the La Liga title for the 1st time in five years, even though Barcelona won its fixture against Eibar. A draw would’ve been enough for Real Madrid but Goals by Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema sealed the title win for Zinedine Zindane’s men in a spectacular fashion.
In the first half, a failed clearance by Luis Hernandez was intercepted by Isco and the Spaniard cleverly passed between the defenders to pick Ronaldo who rounded off the keeper to score within 83 seconds of the game. The tides were with the Glacticos but Malaga weren’t ready to go down without a fight. With Danilo and Marcelo playing most of their trade in the midfield, Malaga’s deep wingers were allowed some space on the flanks to cause some problems for Real. Sandro’s brilliant free kick was amazingly saved by Keylor Navas who hit the post in the process and needed an assistance for his ribs. Kameni denied Ronaldo a second goal and a long shot by Toni Kroos.
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Malaga started the second half with a high pressing play as Navas and Ramos dealt with quite a few chances created by them. A late tackle from Federico Ricca on Ronaldo impacted the former’s knee which could’ve ruled him out of Champions League final but he was OK to continue. A second goal in the 55th minute by Karim Benzema from a rebound all but confirmed Real Madrid’s title win. Los Blancos held on to their nerves for the remainder of the match to lift their 33rd League championship.
With La Liga title secured, Zinedine Zidane will turn his attention to Cardiff for a tough final fixture against the Italian Defensive powerhouse Juventus. With Gareth Bale and Dani Carvajal injured and after a few rotations in the squad, it looks like Zidane has found a starting 11 against Juve with Isco playing an advanced midfielder role and Danilo filling the right back spot. But the formation still has a few gaps, especially on their wings as Malaga showed through attacks by its wingers, a flaw which Juventus will take an advantage of. If the Glacticos wins the final at Cardiff, they would be the first team in UEFA Champions League history to retain its title and Zidane would’ve proved his mettle as a coach.
