Thursday could be the day Real Madrid wins La Liga. Los Blancos take on Villarreal at 3 p.m. ET, and a win clinches the title for a team that has been as good as any in Europe since play resumed with a nine-match winning streak.
Second-place Barcelona also plays on Thursday, taking on Osasuna at the same time. If Barca fails to win, Real Madrid clinches the league as well. Essentially, Barca needs win and have Real Madrid drop points for the race to carry into Matchday 38.
Here's everything to know about the race for the trophy.
Standings
Real has a four-point lead and is at the title's doorstep.
| Position | Games played | Points | Goal differential |
|---|---|---|---|
1. Real Madrid | 36 | 83 | +44 |
| 2. Barcelona | 36 | 79 | +44 |
Remaining schedule
Here's a look at each team's remaining matches. Just two points in two matches for Real Madrid would give Los Blancos the La Liga crown.
Matchday 34: Barcelona 4, Villarreal 2; Real Madrid 1, Athletic Bilbao 0
Matchday 35: Barcelona 1, Espanyol 0; Real Madrid 2, Alaves 0
Matchday 36: Barcelona 1, Real Valladolid 0; Real Madrid 2, Granada 1
Matchday 37: Barcelona vs. Osasuna; Real Madrid vs. Villarreal
Matchday 38: Barcelona at Alaves; Real Madrid at Leganes
What if they finish the season tied atop the table?
In most leagues, the first tiebreaker is goal differential. That isn't the first tiebreaker in Spain, and that won't come into play if the two are tied on points come season's end. In La Liga, the first tiebreaker is head-to-head points, meaning the amount of points the teams earned against in each other this season in their two meetings.
In their first match, Barca and Real drew 0-0. In their second meeting, Real won 2-0. That means in two matches, Real earned four points (a win and a draw) while Barca took one point (a draw and a loss).
Because of this, if the two clubs finish the season tied on points, the title goes to Real Madrid.
