La Liga: Real Madrid drop points, Barca and Atletico win
Real Madrid dropped two points in the race for the La Liga title, being held to a 1-1 draw away to Rayo Vallecano.
Real Madrid dropped two points in the race for the La Liga title, being held to a 1-1 draw away to Rayo Vallecano.
The defender had to leave the pitch in the 39th minute of the game, and the tests carried out on Sunday confirmed he will be out of action until at least August.
La Liga wastes no time in kicking off the New Year with the 19th round of matches to be played over the coming three days.
Interestingly, Girona FC play in the final fixture of Matchday 14, on Monday night, so their title rivals will look to put the pressure on before the leaders are back in action.
Global sports brand Puma and La Liga on Monday unveiled Orbita Yellow Ball, a high-visibility ball designed specifically for La Liga and La Liga Hypermotion matches to be played from Monday till April 27, 2024.
The result means Levante become the first side of the season to be relegated to the second division, given they have an inferior head-to-head goal average with fourth from bottom Cadiz.
Sevilla dropped to fourth after a 0-0 draw at home to Mallorca, leaving Sevilla (who visit Atletico on Sunday) with work to do to ensure a top-four finish, while Mallorca remains in the bottom three and in deep relegation trouble.
Real Madrid made seven changes to the team that defeated Manchester City on Wednesday night, and it showed, particularly in a disjointed first-half performance.
Last Saturday saw Carlo Ancelotti's men crowned La Liga champions with four games left to play, while Wednesday saw them produce yet another miracle comeback in the Champions League with two goals in the last two minutes to book their place in the tournament final.
The result on Saturday night strengthens Barca's second place in La Liga, while doing Atletico Madrid a favour in their efforts to qualify for next season's Champions League, as it leaves them three points clear of Betis ahead of Sunday's Madrid derby.