Chapter 109: The suspense of the league championship reappears
Real Madrid eliminated Bayern Munich 5-0 on aggregate to advance to the 2013-2014 Champions League final, and the next day Atletico Madrid defeated Chelsea 3-1 to meet local rivals Real Madrid in the Champions League final at the Stadium of Light in Lisbon, Portugal.
This matchup has captured the eyes of the world, and in the last 58 years of the Champions League, there have been teams from the same league in the final, but there has never been a team from the same city, and Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid will make history when they meet in the Champions League final.
As a result, the 2013-2014 Champions League final at the Stadium of Light in late May was covered by sports media around the world, but neither side paid much attention to the outside coverage, and they were fully committed to preparing for their respective leagues.
However, judging from the current points situation, Atletico Madrid has a greater hope of winning the league title, they are seven points ahead of Real Madrid with one more round, and the margin for error is relatively high.
Although Real Madrid has one less round, it is very difficult to catch up with Atletico Madrid with three rounds left, and Atletico has an advantage in winning and losing, even if the points are the same, Atletico Madrid will win the league title.
Real Madrid will host Valencia at the Bernabeu Stadium at the weekend, while Atletico Madrid travel to Levante.
Judging from the current points situation, Valencia and Levante are worry-free about relegation this season, and there is no hope of European competition, which means that the remaining games have no desire for them, and they can properly train newcomers to prepare for next season.
At 7 o'clock on Saturday night, Real Madrid took the lead in welcoming Valencia's challenge, and coach Carlo Ancelotti did not make many adjustments to the starting lineup considering that there was still a glimmer of hope for the league title, and Tang Zheng, Cristiano Ronaldo and other main players all played.
However, the effect was not good, with Benzema, Xavi Alonso and Cristiano Ronaldo, who played in the Champions League in midweek, all showing varying degrees of physical fatigue, and the other players were not much better, and their motivation to run was greatly reduced.
No one thought that Real Madrid, who only beat Bayern in midweek, would be pressed by Valencia at home, and even the attack could not pass half time.
Tang Zheng played very hard, but his teammates around him were not in good shape, so his attention could only take care of the defense and had no time to take care of the offense.
Individual efforts were limited, though, as Sergio Ramos, who scored twice in the Champions League in midweek, made a fatal mistake in the 27th minute when he fell in defence from a corner, which led to an easy header from his defending Mathieu, which was too long for goalkeeper Diego Lopes to crash into the bottom right-hand corner.
Valencia led 1-0 away until the end of the first half.
In the second half, Real Madrid did not make the choice to make substitutions.
Of course, this has something to do with Valencia's tactical play.
Valencia, who had taken the lead away, gave up possession and defended with all their might, and Real Madrid had an absolute advantage in possession.
Maintaining control of the ball allows players to reduce their range of movement, conserve energy, and then use frequent guides to pull holes in Valencia's defence.
However, Valencia, who was a guest, was prepared for a long time, had a deep study of Real Madrid's tactical play, and Zhenxing remained very stable, and did not lose its position because of Real Madrid's back and forth passes.
Just when Ancelotti didn't know how to adjust, Real Madrid equalized!
Di Maria took a free kick from the right side of the field, Tang Zheng ran to the front point in the middle and leaned over to head the ball back, Ramos copied the second goal in the Champions League in midweek, received Tang Zheng's header and rubbed the ball towards the goal, Valencia goalkeeper Diego Alves could only watch the football go into the net.
With Tang Zheng and Ramos' headers, Real Madrid equalized!
However, the home fans at the Bernabeu Stadium were happy for less than two minutes when Parejo, from the Real Madrid academy, took advantage of a direct free-kick opportunity to take the lead!
At this moment, the Real Madrid fans in the stands were very anxious, because in the other game played at the same time, Levante led Atletico by two goals at home.
In other words, if Real Madrid win Valencia at home, the points will be reduced to four points, and there is a good chance of a shocking comeback with three games left in the league!
But the good news has just come from the other field, and Real Madrid is also lagging behind.
If both teams lose in the Champions League in midweek, the difference in points between them will likely be the same and Barcelona will benefit.
Ancelotti, who had just received the good news, could only do it in a hurry, after all, it was the eleven players on the field who were in charge of the battle.
With no choice but to follow Clemente's advice and choose to make substitutions, the slightly tired Di Maria and Xavi Alonso were left to rest, and Khedira and Morata were put on the line-up.
Valencia, who took the lead again, played more and more carefully, and did not give Real Madrid a chance at all.
That situation lasted until stoppage time, when Carlo Ancelotti replaced Benzema, who was no longer running, with Ilya Ramendi.
Of course, this is not to adjust the defense, but to put Tang Zheng, who is 1.94 meters tall, to the front line, and use the dead horse as a live horse doctor.
Many commentators think that Ancelotti is making a stupid move, but it is your move that brings Real Madrid back to life.
In the second minute of stoppage time, Carvajal crossed from the right, Tang Zheng pressed Mathieu with his back to the goal to cushion the ball back, Cristiano Ronaldo knocked the ball hard with his right heel in the direction of the goal when he lost his balance, Diego Alves reacted physically, but his fingers did not touch the football......
"Whoa—"
With a loud cheer at the Santiago Bernabeu, the ball crashed into the bottom left corner of the goal.
2:2
After five minutes of stoppage time, Real Madrid equalized in the second minute of stoppage time, and Cristiano Ronaldo, who scored a brilliant goal, did not choose to celebrate, but got up and ran to the goal as soon as possible to scoop up the football, and then put it on the tee point in the centre circle.
Clearly, Cristiano Ronaldo wants to take advantage of the last bit of time to overtake the scoreline!
Valencia, who was equalized, was obviously unwilling, they could drag it out, so much so that Yang 5 commentator He Wei said depressedly: "Valencia has been relegated this season, and there is basically no hope of qualifying for the European points zone, and a point is of little use......"
The implication is that if Valencia can't get three points, why should they try to get one?
However, many times there are not so many reasons, Valencia used to be the third largest club in Spain, although it is now in decline, but the spirit of the body has not been removed, and Parejo, who has not been able to gain a foothold in Real Madrid, also wants to prove himself, and the same is true for other players.
So Valencia played very tenaciously and the score remained unchanged until the end of the game, with both sides scoring one point each.
With Atletico losing to Levante by two goals, Real Madrid's home draw with Valencia was particularly regrettable, with the seven-point gap becoming six.
Interestingly, Barcelona dropped points the next day as they drew 2-2 at home to Getafe.
In this way, Atletico Madrid are still six and seven points ahead of Real Madrid and Barcelona with one game less with two games remaining, which means that Atletico Madrid can win at home to Malaga in the next home league and they will win the league title again after 18 years......
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The Real Madrid players on the broadcast looked very depressed, they are likely to win the Copa del Rey and the Champions League this season, but the possible league title may not exist because of this draw.
Of course, Real Madrid still has a theoretical chance of winning the title.
Atletico Madrid has two more league games and Real Madrid has three more games, it doesn't matter if they are six points behind and the relationship between wins and losses is not dominant, as long as Atletico Madrid loses all the next two games, and Real Madrid can reverse the championship with seven points in the remaining three games, that is, two wins and one draw.
But...... The chances are slim as Atletico have only one of their remaining two games to win the title, and Real Madrid have no room for error.
The most important thing is that Real Madrid and Barcelona have played a league game in the league that is not made up at the end of the season, but in the middle of next week.
Playing in the Champions League semi-finals, Real Madrid will need to play two games in a row, but Atletico don't have that problem, they have enough time to reflect on why they lost away from home and then try to win the league title at home to Malaga.
So Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti has a headache and doesn't know if he should give up the league and then focus all his attention on preparing for the Champions League final.
After all, Atletico only need to win against Malaga to win the title one round earlier.
Instead of focusing on the illusory league title, can we focus on the Champions League final opponents Atletico Madrid?
It was also assistant coach Clemente, who had a flexible mind, and he suggested that Carlo Ancelotti should ventilate with the players.
With two days to go until the stoppage, Carlo Ancelotti held a meeting with his players in the tactical hall of the living building of the Valdebebas training base to discuss the future of the game.
The likes of Karim Benzema, Xavi Alonso, Sergio Ramos and captain Iker Casillas believe the team should focus more on the Champions League final, with the league title race now completely at a disadvantage and only theoretically possible, plus fitness is an issue at the end of the league.
Tang Zheng and Cristiano Ronaldo share the same sentiment and believe that the team should not abandon the league altogether for a future Champions League final.
There is still half a month before the start of the Champions League, there is enough time to prepare, and the remaining opponents in the league are not particularly strong, so it should not be a problem to play seriously to win.
Ancelotti as the head coach hopes to give up the league, because the pressure of the Real Madrid manager is very high, and he is worried that in the end, he will not be able to win the league and the Champions League, and Ancelotti will definitely be fully responsible as the head coach at that time.
But then again, the views of the superstars of Tang Zheng and Cristiano Ronaldo cannot be ignored, and the mediocre Ancelotti finally chose a compromise approach, that is, Tang Zheng and Cristiano Ronaldo lead the lineup.
As for the other main players, those with serious physical fatigue are directly not in the 18-man squad, and the main players who are relatively tired are sitting on the bench.
In midweek, Real Madrid and Barcelona play a 34-round make-up match.
Real Madrid travel to Valladolid and Barcelona host Athletic Bilbao.
There were few surprises in the game, Real Madrid defeated relegation pressure Valladolid 1:0 with Tang Zheng's corner kick in a semi-main lineup, and Barcelona beat Athletic Bilbao 2:1 at home.
In the 2013-2014 La Liga season, all 36 rounds were played, with Atletico Madrid accumulating 89 points, Real Madrid accumulating 86 points, and Barcelona accumulating 85 points.
With two rounds remaining, all three teams could win the 2013-2014 La Liga title, but Atletico and Real Madrid have a win-loss advantage, which means they can win the league title one round earlier if they win Malaga at home......
Compared to other league championships, the dust has basically settled, and the La Liga championship still needs time to decide.
Four days later, Real Madrid travel to Celta, Atletico Madrid take on Malaga and Barcelona travel to Elche.
These three games are the three most watched battles besides the relegation battle, because the outcome of the game will directly affect the final league title.
Before the start of the game, the mainstream media in Europe speculated on a number of possibilities, the most likely of which was that Atletico Madrid won Malaga at home, winning the league title for the first time in 18 years, because Malaga had no desire.
In fact, Atletico Madrid drew with Malaga unexpectedly, while Real Madrid and Barcelona both won, and then the suspense of the league title race was left in the final round.
However, the results of the three games were unexpected, with Atletico unexpectedly suffering two consecutive defeats, a surprise defeat at home to Malaga and a 2-2 draw away to Celta Vigo.
Fortunately, Barcelona could not beat Elche as a guest, and the two sides drew 1-1.
Therefore, in the 2013-2014 La Liga season, the 37 rounds have passed, and the points are very close, Atletico Madrid has suffered two consecutive defeats in the league and has 89 points, Real Madrid is still ranked second with 87 points, and Barcelona is third with 86 points.
No one expected this ending, but Barcelona fans were the happiest, they missed the Copa del Rey and eliminated the Champions League before the final round of the league began!
Taking advantage of the consecutive points dropped by Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid to return to second place in the league, and facing Atletico Madrid at home in the final round, it means that as long as they beat Atletico Madrid in the final round, they can win the league title!
The next day, the headline of the French newspaper Le Les Liga ran the following headline: "La Liga's magical 2013-2014 season!"
Atletico Madrid coach Simeone and his players are under a lot of pressure after suffering two consecutive defeats in the league, and the league title is already a boiled duck, but who would have thought that it could fly off its mouth?
However, Atletico remain at the top of the table and only need to remain unbeaten in the final round to claim the league title.
Before the final round of La Liga, in addition to the suspense of the league championship becoming the focus of media attention, there are also relegation places.
Real Betis were relegated early, while the other two spots will be drawn between Valladolid, Osasuna, Granada, Getafe and Almeria.
Of course, the most talked-about thing is the league title race.
Whether it's Atletico Madrid or Real Madrid. Or Barcelona?