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Tuesday, May 8, 2018

The less interesting of all Clasicos?

Por Feco

The Spanish League, known internationally as La Liga, already has a champion, but there are still challenges to be reached until the final day. On the individual side, the 'Pichichi', the Golden Boot, and the 'Zamora'. On a collective level, the main objective is to finish unbeaten, but also to defeat Real Madrid.

El Clasico is close and many interesting numbers are at stake. Barcelona currently tops the league and the distance between them and Real Madrid is 18 points. If the team maintains this gap until the conclusion of the championship, it will become the bulkiest advantage of the ‘blaugranas’ in all history. The record goes back to the 1984-1985 season, when Terry Venables’ Barca sent in the league from the first to the last day and conquered a title that had been resisting for 11 years. These were other times, Leagues of two points for victory and only 34 days, so the sidereal advantage over the maximum rival has even more merit.

The Catalans completed the championship with 53 points, the result of 21 wins, 11 draws and only 2 losses. The Real Madrid only added 36 points and was to 17 away of Barça in one of its worse seasons, because it finished fifth. The 1973-1974 season, that of Johan Cruyff, Barcelona took 16 points lead from Real Madrid in a league also of 34 days. The most recent distance in the League came in the 2012-2013 campaign. It was the league of Tito Vilanova, which went down in history by the hundred points added. Mourinho’s Real Madrid stayed at 85.

Those under Ernesto Valverde became leaders on the second day and no longer gave up their throne. Little by little, they increased distances with Real Madrid until reaching the maximum of 19 points. It was achieved in the last day of the first round, after prevailing in a scenario as complicated as Anoeta (2-4) and stayed for four days, until the 23rd, after playing at the Camp Nou against Getafe (0-0). A key moment of the season was the visit to Santiago Bernabeu, on matchday 17. Barça conquered the rivals with a 0-3 score and went with 14 points of advantage over its maximum opponents. If Barça wins the Classic on Sunday and leads by 18 points its rival, there will be three games to try to beat this almost unattainable record.To make matters more intriguing, Messi is fighting for the 'Pichichi' and the Golden Boot, and ter Stegen for a much more complicated, 'Zamora' award.

It is a fact that Barcelona is a champion with four games remaining, and Real Madrid, which can only aspire to second place, have been trying to minimize the importance of the League for some time while focusing their interest on the Champions League final on the 26th. There is no significant sports interests at stake, but the rivalry, the emotional key and the historical implication remain.