The two Madrid sides are in action to decide who will be crowned 2020/21 La Liga Champions
The conclusion of this year's La Liga campaign is upon us and the trophy is almost in grasp for Atletico Madrid. They need to win to guarantee a first title for Diego Simeone since 2014 as El Cholo once again tries to break up the monopoly of Barcelona and city rivals Real Madrid. The Catalsn side fell at the penultimate hurdle losing 2-1 at home to Celta Vigo last weekend. That leaves the two Madrid teams to battle it out. Atletico are firmly in the driver's seat with a two point advantage but they are not quite home yet. Both of these games not only have massive implications for the title chasers but also for their opponents. It should be a tense final day in the Spanish top flight.
Permutations: Who needs what to win La Liga?
- If Atletico Madrid draw against relegation threatened Valladolid, and Real Madrid beat Villarreal by three or more goals, Los Blancos can steal the title.
- If Atletico Madrid win, it's all over.
- If Real Madrid do anything less than win against Villarreal, it's all over.
- For Barcelona, it's already all over.
And then there were two... đź‘€
— LaLiga English (@LaLigaEN) May 16, 2021
The title race will be decided on the final weekend in #LaLigaSantander! 🏆 pic.twitter.com/vjWT9HFwBJ
Preview: Real Valladolid vs Atletico Madrid
Valladolid need to win to have any chance of escaping relegation. They currently sit 19th in the table and will go down to the Segunda if either Elche or Huesca pick up a point. It's a tough ask but they will have to fight until the end. No team in the league has drawn more games than Valladolid but they just cannot turn those draws into wins. They haven't picked up three points since they beat 10 man Getafe in early March. On Saturday, they will need an historic victory over Atletico and both Elche and Huesca to lose. The hosts will be missing Raul Garcia and Kenan Kodro due to injury and Ruben Alcaraz and Roberto Jiminez to suspension. When all is said and done, they will surely be relegated but could they drag Atletico down to hell with them?
Atletico had looked in danger of bottling the title but have restored some form in recent weeks with three wins and a draw. It would be a catastrophic failure for them to not win this game with the likes of Saul, Koke, Carrasco and Suarez on the pitch but they mustn't take the league's draw specialists lightly. Included in their endless list of draws are two against fourth placed Sevilla. Valladolid can easily spoil this party and you wouldn't bet against Real Madrid hammering Villarreal. Simeone will demand that his players go out and destroy the hosts to erase any doubt. He will be missing Thomas Lemar due to a muscle injury and Stefan Savic is suspended, but besides that they will be at full strength.
All in all, you'd be crazy to bet against an Atletico win but stranger things have happened.
âťťIt's a final and we will both fight for our lives.âťž
— Atlético de Madrid (@atletienglish) May 21, 2021
Who's ready for tomorrow's LaLiga finale 🆚 Real Valladolid? pic.twitter.com/txfPdyoPvZ
Preview: Real Madrid vs Villarreal
Real Madrid are also in for a fight. This is no dead rubber for Villarreal. They are currently 7th and on course to qualify for the inaugural UEFA Conference League. They would much prefer to play in the more prestigious Europa League again but to do that they will need at least a point to leapfrog Real Betis into 6th (if Betis lose to Celta) or a win could see them go into 5th ahead of Real Sociedad. That finish would allow them to skip the pesky qualifying rounds of next season's Europa League. For that to happen they’d need the Basque side to slip up against Osasuna.
If the other two results don't go their way, it won't matter if they cause an upset on Saturday. They will enter the dreaded Conference League on league position. However, there is a twist in the tale. Even in that scenario, they can still qualify for the UEFA Champions League if they beat Manchester United in the final on Wednesday. It will be interesting to see which game Unai Emery prioritises. Will he rest players here and gamble on giving everything against Manchester United to try and win the Europa League (for the fourth time as a coach) or will he put out his best team here to fight tooth and nail to guarantee Europa League qualification for next season? Villarreal will be gutted to miss Samuel Chukwueze due to a muscle injury. He joins Juan Foyth on the sidelines.
Despite the dramatic permutations for Villarreal, the real story here is Real Madrid. They absolutely must win and hope Atletico slip up to have any chance of winning the title. Los Blancos will again be without half of their defenders (Mendy, Carvajal, Vazquez and of course Ramos). Zidane's side will also be without key midfielder Toni Kroos, but they should still have a team full of quality with experienced winners like Modric, Benzema, Casemiro and Varane. Besides that they will be at full strength and raring to go. They will be hoping to extend their 17 game unbeaten run, the best they’ve had under Zidane’s tutelage in a single season. Madrid's makeshift backline must be wary of Villarreal striker Carlos Bacca who scored a hat trick against fellow top four side Sevilla last time out, when The Yellow Submarine dismantled their 10 men in a 4-0 victory, while Real Madrid laboured to a 1-0 win against 10 men Athletic.
Does Zidane get one more iconic performance out of his ageing team in decline on the hunt for one more trophy before he inevitably bows out in the summer? Perhaps, but will it be enough? They’ll need an emphatic victory to have any chance at all.
Zidane: “It’s not the right time to talk about my future”. He’s gonna announce his final decision only after last match. ⚪️ #Real
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) May 21, 2021
Real position: Zidane will NOT be sacked. If he decides to continue, the club will be happy with him. If not, Max Allegri will be the main option.
How to watch Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid live on TV
Both games are scheduled to take place Saturday 22 May 2021 at 17.00
You can watch Real Madrid take on Villarreal on Premier Sports 1 and Atletico Madrid against Real Valladolid on Premier Sports 2
Premier Sports offer live coverage of football from across Europe’s biggest leagues. There are a variety of packages available which include their flagship Premier Sports 1 and 2 channels, as well as La Liga TV, or you can subscribe to La Liga TV alone. They have offers for Sky, Virgin Media and Net Gem customers.
You can even live stream Premier Sports through their online Premier Player. You can visit their website on desktop or watch on your favourite devices through their dedicated Android and IOS apps. The player can be purchased as part of a TV & online bundle, or you can get the online option alone if live streaming is all you need.
Click here to check out Premier Player and the various packages they have on offer.
How to watch Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid online via live stream
You can watch both of these games live and absolutely free online via live stream with bet 365. Using their website on desktop or their mobile app, you can get access to live football from across Europe's top competitions. They have the rights to live stream La Liga, Bundesliga, Serie A, Ligue 1 and much more. Don't miss a beat of La Liga's dramatic final day with Bet 365. Terms and conditions apply.
Click here to check out Bet 365 and their live streams.
Get all the latest news and information about where to watch your favourite clubs
With our dedicated live football on TV and football live stream pages, you'll never be in the dark about when your team is playing and how you can watch them. We have up to the minute information in our TV guide with channel listings, trusted and legal sources of live streaming, as well as data, stats and much more.
Click here to check out our TV guide page.
Click here to check out our live streaming page.
Follow us on Twitter: @SporticosCom
Follow me on Twitter: @CraigHumpage
