La Liga (Spanish League) Prediction Thread 2025/26

[cozytrade]

Real Madrid and Barcelona are both incredibly strong team. However currently Barcelona is ahead in La Liga. They are at the top of the table & have created a significant points gap over Real Madrid by winning their recent matches

My opinion is that Real Madrid should not be underestimated as they defeated Barcelona in El Clasico this season. But considering Blaugrana's current form and their winning streak it seems they are the main favorite to win the title. However you are right there is still a lot left in this season! If they slip up once or twice the situation could change completely

Yes, Barcelona and Real Madrid are strong teams and they are always competing. However, Barcelona is currently at the top of the table and could surpass Real Madrid's points tally. But yes, this time Barcelona has always performed well in every match, which is certainly different from Real Madrid, which has always been inconsistent in winning, ultimately causing Real Madrid to lose the competition for now.

Real Madrid cannot be underestimated because they have a strong squad, and this was proven in the recent El Clasico match where Barcelona lost, showing that Real madrid has strength that cannot be underestimated. However, the situation seems to have changed now because Barcelona is currently better than Real Madrid, and Barcelona is indeed the favorite to win the championship this season. But of course, we won't know what will happen in the future because there are still many matches to be played. And indeed, if Real Madrid or Barcelona make a mistake, it will certainly have fatal consequences, making it difficult for one of them to become champions. In your opinion, who will win the upcoming El Clasico, Real Madrid or Barcelona?

I agree, the current shape that Barcelona has taken this season has been quite powerful and their consistency has given them an advantage in La Liga at this point. Real Madrid, however, can not be underestimated. They possess a strong team and have the experience to reverse the games and this is what they did during the last El Clasico. It is hard to predict the next clash since both teams can win, and it could be the proficiency of assuming the pressure. Barcelo could steal it but any kind of slip would give Real Madrid an opportunity to exploit.

[IvugeoEvolutionCoin]

There is a lot of time left in this season in La Liga. In the beginning, Real Madrid had a good pace of play and they held the top spot of the points list for a long time. Since El Clasico, Real Madrid started losing points and Barcelona players started performing well after recovering from injuries. Due to which they can gradually stay at the top of the points list and currently they are maintaining this position. However, both Real Madrid and Barcelona are first grade teams. So in the end they will try to snatch the trophy by competing with each other. Let's see who can be the owner of the desired trophy.

In terms of consistency, Barcelona has been so good at maintaining their consistency that they have a four-point lead over Real Madrid, and this will likely continue, given Barcelona's very positive momentum. So it will be quite difficult for Real Madrid to catch Barcelona, ​​as they haven't shown the same consistency as Barcelona.
Xabi needs to improve Real Madrid's consistency as they've lost their momentum in leading La Liga. He needs to think holistically to come up with the best strategy to ensure Real Madrid can consistently pick up three points... and hope that Barcelona can be caught out by another team, so they can climb up the table.

Barcelona just started topping the league of recent because Real Madrid was there before but they slip off and gave Barcelona the room to take advantage and fortunately for Barcelona, they didn't play with that great opportunity but the fact they are leading this La Liga table doesn't still mean they are better than real Madrid and I believe both team are very conscious of themselves now especially Barcelona because any slight mistake will have a bad effect on them and there is chance that Real Madrid can sill lead the table if they improve more.

I concur with the perceptions brought forward in this discussion. It is a credit to Barcelona that they took advantage of the fact that Real Madrid has recently lost their form, particularly when their star players have come back to the team following an injury. The fact that they have been so consistent and are in an advantaged position in terms of their points are a positive development, but it does not necessarily make them better than Real Madrid. At some point in the season, Madrid appeared to be more stable and held the leading position long enough. What they need right now is stability and that is what should be taken care of by Xabi Alonso in case they want to be ahead of others. Concurrently, Barcelona should be on their guard since a single slip would cost them heavily. The La Liga title race is still in progress and very competitive, as there are numerous matches to be played.

[barbara44]

While it is true that Espanyol has done good, and did managed to beat Bilbao, and even ahead of them in the standings, and yes they are a good team, half of the result goes to Bilbao who is doing terrible this season and one of the reasons why Espanyol managed to find easy goals. Reality is that they have not done that well so far and Bilbao should take a look at what they have done recently that made them this bad and need to get better results.

This is not going to be easy to handle and should be something that will take some time, otherwise it is not that easy to recover. Most people do not see this but the entire self imposed restrictions they have, makes it very hard for Bilbao to get better all the time and takes a long time to be great.

[RaltcoinsB]

Real Madrid and Barcelona are both incredibly strong team. However currently Barcelona is ahead in La Liga. They are at the top of the table & have created a significant points gap over Real Madrid by winning their recent matches

My opinion is that Real Madrid should not be underestimated as they defeated Barcelona in El Clasico this season. But considering Blaugrana's current form and their winning streak it seems they are the main favorite to win the title. However you are right there is still a lot left in this season! If they slip up once or twice the situation could change completely

Yes, Barcelona and Real Madrid are strong teams and they are always competing. However, Barcelona is currently at the top of the table and could surpass Real Madrid's points tally. But yes, this time Barcelona has always performed well in every match, which is certainly different from Real Madrid, which has always been inconsistent in winning, ultimately causing Real Madrid to lose the competition for now.

Real Madrid cannot be underestimated because they have a strong squad, and this was proven in the recent El Clasico match where Barcelona lost, showing that Real madrid has strength that cannot be underestimated. However, the situation seems to have changed now because Barcelona is currently better than Real Madrid, and Barcelona is indeed the favorite to win the championship this season. But of course, we won't know what will happen in the future because there are still many matches to be played. And indeed, if Real Madrid or Barcelona make a mistake, it will certainly have fatal consequences, making it difficult for one of them to become champions. In your opinion, who will win the upcoming El Clasico, Real Madrid or Barcelona?

I agree, the current shape that Barcelona has taken this season has been quite powerful and their consistency has given them an advantage in La Liga at this point. Real Madrid, however, can not be underestimated. They possess a strong team and have the experience to reverse the games and this is what they did during the last El Clasico. It is hard to predict the next clash since both teams can win, and it could be the proficiency of assuming the pressure. Barcelo could steal it but any kind of slip would give Real Madrid an opportunity to exploit.

We can now say that a better competition awaits us in 2026 after the New Year break. Barcelona is one of the teams that will continue the fight; they are currently leading and can maintain their advantage. Real Madrid, on the other hand, wants to reclaim the advantage they couldn't maintain and the leadership they lost. Real Madrid is having a lot of problems defensively in Spain. Now they have also started to struggle to score goals. They are far from being the magnificent team they once were, easily beating other teams.

They will continue to compete in the second half of the league, and we will see a similar rivalry between Barcelona and Real Madrid. I think it will be a competition that continues until the end of the season.

[iamsange]

I concur with the perceptions brought forward in this discussion. It is a credit to Barcelona that they took advantage of the fact that Real Madrid has recently lost their form, particularly when their star players have come back to the team following an injury. The fact that they have been so consistent and are in an advantaged position in terms of their points are a positive development, but it does not necessarily make them better than Real Madrid. At some point in the season, Madrid appeared to be more stable and held the leading position long enough. What they need right now is stability and that is what should be taken care of by Xabi Alonso in case they want to be ahead of others. Concurrently, Barcelona should be on their guard since a single slip would cost them heavily. The La Liga title race is still in progress and very competitive, as there are numerous matches to be played.

Barcelona never wastes the opportunities given by other teams so for them it is very natural with their current position at the top of the standings this is all inseparable from what is experienced by the Real Madrid squad where they are currently still hampered by the problem of prioritizing too much on one player and there are also other internal problems that they have not resolved so this is one of the reasons that makes the Real Madrid team currently lose points and are below Barcelona and what we need to know is that Real Madrid's position is actually at the top of the standings with a fairly large points gap when there has not been a problem that hit Real Madrid's depth at that time until they were overtaken by their rivals so that currently Barcelona can top the La Liga standings.

[changaa]

Since defeating at El Clasico match, Barcelona show good progress and success leading back the top position due inconsistent performance from Real Madrid, Barcelona not waste the great opportunity after when Real Madrid losses many points and the 8 winning matches in a row at La Liga change the current standings from previously at 2nd place now Barcelona has 4 points gap at the top position. Seems not change yet with Real Madrid success winning the first el clasico match but few matches later loss points from the mediocre teams.
Xabi Alonso on huge pressure position, if can't win La Liga trophy can't guarantee his position keep secure how previously many rumor will sack after having bad result. I don't think need at the end of this season if get bad result few matches later Xabi Alonso will sack easily and replacing by top manager.

If Barcelona continues to exploit Real Madrid's ups and downs, they will not only continue to maintain first place, but will also be able to win.

Only 4 points and Real Madrid who do not substantially affect a mix that leads Barcelona to face everything with ease, taking advantage of Real's less performing moments.
Considering the score in the standings, Barcelona can take it easy and play at full capacity to give Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid even more of a lead.

[aipercoin]

Espanyol won this match with their great performance, especially the goalkeeper of the Espanyol team, he performed quite well. Even though the players of the Athletic Club team were quite aggressive, they could not prevent the last attack, although they performed well at the beginning, they performed badly at the last minute and lost three points. Not many people bet on the Espanyol team, but luck made the Espanyol team win and opened the fortune of the gamblers. This match was quite competitive but still I call the Espanyol team lucky because they showed a last-minute surprise and won and collected three points, the Espanyol team occupied the fifth place in the points table.

I wouldn't just say luck, Espanyol put in the effort and have a very respectable goalkeeper and after conceding the first goal they seem to have ignited and started playing differently, in fact in the second half they showed grit and character to bring home the result, i wouldn't call this victory a stroke of luck.

[wmaurik]

Real Madrid at this point cannot also be considered as bene better than Barcelona either, they are both good in their way and so I just wish for the better nad lucky side to win the title as they are both good top contenders of the title.  If Real Madrid does not up their game to coming back sound, they may not ge the chances to top Barcelona because Barcelona is not slowing down at all.

If Real Madrid is still serious about getting ahead of Barcelona, ​​their only option is to bounce back in the second half of the season. Besides being four points behind Barcelona, ​​Real Madrid's own abilities and performances haven't been particularly good, though not bad, this season. I just want to see how Real Madrid bounces back in the second half of the season, because, as you said, Barcelona hasn't slowed down at all in terms of capitalizing on the opportunities presented to them this season.

[Solokan]

If Xabi Alonso continues to lose several key players to injury in the second half of the season, Real Madrid chances of turning things around and taking over the top spot from Barcelona will be even more difficult. The pressure of the Champions League could also add to the difficulty, but the January transfer window could offer an alternative solution for those looking to strengthen their squad by recruiting new players.

We all know that Madrid is a team that rarely uses the January transfer window to buy players, even when they really need them to patch up some injured players. For example, last season, we certainly still remember that since the beginning of the season they were hit by a storm of injuries that were even worse than this season. What did they do? When Ancelotti asked Perez to buy some players in January, he did not give the green light until Ancelotti was finally fired. Maybe the situation will be the same as with Xabi, where he has to use the players currently in the team, but hopefully Perez learns from his mistakes.

Yes, at that time there were several players who were injured and Real Madrid really needed new players, but it was unfortunate that even though Ancelotti advised Perez to buy players, Perez did not grant Ancelotti's request, which ultimately resulted in Real Madrid not winning any trophies and Ancelotti being fired. I also hope Perez can learn from last season's experience and avoid repeating the same mistake. Now we'll just have to wait and see what happens—whether Real Madrid will sign new players in the upcoming transfer window or not.

But sometimes I also understand Real Madrid and Perez's decision to never buy players in the January transfer window because Real Madrid always has good players and always has good first and second-string players. So, in my opinion, there won't be any problems even if Real Madrid doesn't bring in new players because they already have good players. So, of course, the coach must be able to strategize. But we won't know what will happen in the January transfer window—whether new players will come to Real Madrid or not. But yes, in my opinion, there won't be any new players coming because Real Madrid still has good players, and I think Xabi must be able to train the existing players so that Real Madrid can perform even better.

[Futurexxx]

If Real Madrid is still serious about getting ahead of Barcelona, ​​their only option is to bounce back in the second half of the season. Besides being four points behind Barcelona, ​​Real Madrid's own abilities and performances haven't been particularly good, though not bad, this season. I just want to see how Real Madrid bounces back in the second half of the season, because, as you said, Barcelona hasn't slowed down at all in terms of capitalizing on the opportunities presented to them this season.

When it comes to winning the league title, wether it's Spanish laliga or Epl title or any other league in the world, what's define the champions is the team with the highest level of consistency, so right now, as we can all see, Barcelona are the most consistent team in the Spanish laliga, so for real madrid to stand a chance this season, they needs to be consistent as ever and hopefully beat Barcelona when they are up against them in the reverse fixtures next year. So I am not going to feel pity for them in any way because any point they have accumulated up till now is what they deserve, so as Barcelona.

[bastisisca]

Yet Barca remain at the top position followed by Real Madrid which makes it a bit difficult for Villarreal to break in and the reason why this might be difficult for Villarreal is because they failed to get a single point after facing the top three teams in the la liga this season, they lost to Barcelona, Real Madrid and Athletico Madrid respectively in their first leg encounter with these big sides and would likely lose to these teams in the second leg presumably.

After much observation, i have to give Real Madrid a negative outlook.
Xabi Alonso is drowning in problems and no one is throwing him a life preserver.
Under these conditions, i see a recovery as difficult in the short term; let's see how it evolves.
At this point, Barcelona is the favorite to win La Liga

[dollyamo]

I?m so sorry for your huge losses, Espanyol is a good team and most times you can find it very difficult to predict such games, I have been watching football for a long time, sometimes when you bet this games it can mess up your heard to think otherwise, I think you could have gone into Espanyol winning the game, but I know you must have found it difficult to predict Espanyol to win the game, sometimes you might need some break, but right now you don?t need to take a break, you might just be close to winning, I?m speaking from experience when I had some difficulties with my gambling, I was thinking of taking a break from gambling, I had to go all in with my prediction and that was when I won hugely, you don?t just know when you decide to  take a break that is when your luck comes, I will suggest you have to keep gambling, you could win before the game comes to an end.

Espanyol is a good team for sure but they are not incisive in matches, when they play you can never predict what will happen they are too unpredictable in their matches.
When there are these kinds of matches there are two options, either you play one of the two teams with your eyes closed or you play soul for the one you think will get the win or the goals, unfortunately it is really difficult to predict Espanyol matches.

[Gost ms]

Real Madrid and Barcelona are both incredibly strong team. However currently Barcelona is ahead in La Liga. They are at the top of the table & have created a significant points gap over Real Madrid by winning their recent matches

My opinion is that Real Madrid should not be underestimated as they defeated Barcelona in El Clasico this season. But considering Blaugrana's current form and their winning streak it seems they are the main favorite to win the title. However you are right there is still a lot left in this season! If they slip up once or twice the situation could change completely

Yes, Barcelona and Real Madrid are strong teams and they are always competing. However, Barcelona is currently at the top of the table and could surpass Real Madrid's points tally. But yes, this time Barcelona has always performed well in every match, which is certainly different from Real Madrid, which has always been inconsistent in winning, ultimately causing Real Madrid to lose the competition for now.

Real Madrid cannot be underestimated because they have a strong squad, and this was proven in the recent El Clasico match where Barcelona lost, showing that Real madrid has strength that cannot be underestimated. However, the situation seems to have changed now because Barcelona is currently better than Real Madrid, and Barcelona is indeed the favorite to win the championship this season. But of course, we won't know what will happen in the future because there are still many matches to be played. And indeed, if Real Madrid or Barcelona make a mistake, it will certainly have fatal consequences, making it difficult for one of them to become champions. In your opinion, who will win the upcoming El Clasico, Real Madrid or Barcelona?

I agree, the current shape that Barcelona has taken this season has been quite powerful and their consistency has given them an advantage in La Liga at this point. Real Madrid, however, can not be underestimated. They possess a strong team and have the experience to reverse the games and this is what they did during the last El Clasico. It is hard to predict the next clash since both teams can win, and it could be the proficiency of assuming the pressure. Barcelo could steal it but any kind of slip would give Real Madrid an opportunity to exploit.

I have no doubts about Barcelona's performance. Because they are currently performing very well and they are in very good form. From the beginning we have seen how Barcelona has maintained their performance this season. Even when their best players were injured, their performance was not affected in any way.

Real Madrid's current performance is very mixed. Sometimes they are seen losing very easily and sometimes they are seen winning matches that are unimaginable. With such mixed performance, it is not possible to say what Real Madrid will do in the upcoming matches.

[Fakhrulenclix]

Yet Barca remain at the top position followed by Real Madrid which makes it a bit difficult for Villarreal to break in and the reason why this might be difficult for Villarreal is because they failed to get a single point after facing the top three teams in the la liga this season, they lost to Barcelona, Real Madrid and Athletico Madrid respectively in their first leg encounter with these big sides and would likely lose to these teams in the second leg presumably.

After much observation, i have to give Real Madrid a negative outlook.
Xabi Alonso is drowning in problems and no one is throwing him a life preserver.
Under these conditions, i see a recovery as difficult in the short term; let's see how it evolves.
At this point, Barcelona is the favorite to win La Liga

Barcelona can capitalize on Real Madrid's slump, and now they have a four-point lead, so I think that's a significant gap, making Barcelona quite comfortable at the top of the table.

I also think it will be very difficult for Xabi Alonso to resolve this issue, as he is a young coach with minimal experience, especially with Real Madrid's squad filled with star players who naturally have high egos. So, it's possible that Barcelona can exploit this issue to win the La Liga title this season. Honestly, I'm already a big favorite for Barcelona to win the title.

[allfriends88]

While it is true that Espanyol has done good, and did managed to beat Bilbao, and even ahead of them in the standings, and yes they are a good team, half of the result goes to Bilbao who is doing terrible this season and one of the reasons why Espanyol managed to find easy goals. Reality is that they have not done that well so far and Bilbao should take a look at what they have done recently that made them this bad and need to get better results.

This season Espanyol are to be applauded for their improved performances, but the match against Barcelona will be a challenge and this match will prove how far Espanyol have come. All teams have time to prepare after celebrating the holidays.

[Solokan]

While it is true that Espanyol has done good, and did managed to beat Bilbao, and even ahead of them in the standings, and yes they are a good team, half of the result goes to Bilbao who is doing terrible this season and one of the reasons why Espanyol managed to find easy goals. Reality is that they have not done that well so far and Bilbao should take a look at what they have done recently that made them this bad and need to get better results.

This is not going to be easy to handle and should be something that will take some time, otherwise it is not that easy to recover. Most people do not see this but the entire self imposed restrictions they have, makes it very hard for Bilbao to get better all the time and takes a long time to be great.

Espanyol has truly performed exceptionally this season and they have a strong squad that makes it difficult for other teams to compete against them. In their last match, Bilbao, a team that cannot be underestimated, was defeated by Espanyol, which I think is a remarkable achievement.  Last season, Bilbao ranked 4th, but unfortunately, they are now in 8th place.

However, I believe there is still time for Bilbao to improve because they still have many games to play. Looking at the current situation, I think it would be better for Bilbao to sign many strong players in the January transfer window because, in my opinion, if they don't sign new strong players, it will be very difficult for Bilbao to bounce back. I think if Bilbao manages to sign new strong players, there is potential for Bilbao to move up the rankings. Bilbao will next face Osasuna. In my opinion, Bilbao should be able to win that match. What do you think? Can Bilbao win that match?

[Olatundespo]

Real Madrid and Barcelona are both incredibly strong team. However currently Barcelona is ahead in La Liga. They are at the top of the table & have created a significant points gap over Real Madrid by winning their recent matches

My opinion is that Real Madrid should not be underestimated as they defeated Barcelona in El Clasico this season. But considering Blaugrana's current form and their winning streak it seems they are the main favorite to win the title. However you are right there is still a lot left in this season! If they slip up once or twice the situation could change completely

Yes, Barcelona and Real Madrid are strong teams and they are always competing. However, Barcelona is currently at the top of the table and could surpass Real Madrid's points tally. But yes, this time Barcelona has always performed well in every match, which is certainly different from Real Madrid, which has always been inconsistent in winning, ultimately causing Real Madrid to lose the competition for now.

Real Madrid cannot be underestimated because they have a strong squad, and this was proven in the recent El Clasico match where Barcelona lost, showing that Real madrid has strength that cannot be underestimated. However, the situation seems to have changed now because Barcelona is currently better than Real Madrid, and Barcelona is indeed the favorite to win the championship this season. But of course, we won't know what will happen in the future because there are still many matches to be played. And indeed, if Real Madrid or Barcelona make a mistake, it will certainly have fatal consequences, making it difficult for one of them to become champions. In your opinion, who will win the upcoming El Clasico, Real Madrid or Barcelona?

I agree, the current shape that Barcelona has taken this season has been quite powerful and their consistency has given them an advantage in La Liga at this point. Real Madrid, however, can not be underestimated. They possess a strong team and have the experience to reverse the games and this is what they did during the last El Clasico. It is hard to predict the next clash since both teams can win, and it could be the proficiency of assuming the pressure. Barcelo could steal it but any kind of slip would give Real Madrid an opportunity to exploit.

In terms of performance, Barcelona is showing stability compared to Real Madrid. They will not want to be dethroned from the top position easily. They have that ability and the weakness in the team has been largely eliminated. Raphinha has recovered from the injury and is getting goals. Lamine Yamal is playing well even he is not playing brilliantly. Villarreal is one of the emerging and promising teams this season and is in fourth position with 35 points. Barcelona's 2-goal victory against them has further strengthened their position in the tournament.

Real Madrid's position is still in a shaky position because most of the players in the team are not in good form. Mbappé has been in good form in most of the matches in the tournament but Vinicius has not been able to play well in recent matches. In addition, Jude Bellingham has played well in a few matches but it is not satisfactory.

[W Jr.]

Real Madrid at this point cannot also be considered as bene better than Barcelona either, they are both good in their way and so I just wish for the better nad lucky side to win the title as they are both good top contenders of the title.  If Real Madrid does not up their game to coming back sound, they may not ge the chances to top Barcelona because Barcelona is not slowing down at all.

If Real Madrid is still serious about getting ahead of Barcelona, ​​their only option is to bounce back in the second half of the season. Besides being four points behind Barcelona, ​​Real Madrid's own abilities and performances haven't been particularly good, though not bad, this season. I just want to see how Real Madrid bounces back in the second half of the season, because, as you said, Barcelona hasn't slowed down at all in terms of capitalizing on the opportunities presented to them this season.

Barcelona has had a fantastic year outside of El Clasico. Although they lost to Real Madrid in El Clasico, they've capitalized on Real Madrid's dropped points in the rest of the season, maintaining a four-point lead. With Yamal, they've become a great team, and they'll continue to be so this year. If they win the second El Clasico, they could seal the league title.

[maknyos]

Yet Barca remain at the top position followed by Real Madrid which makes it a bit difficult for Villarreal to break in and the reason why this might be difficult for Villarreal is because they failed to get a single point after facing the top three teams in the la liga this season, they lost to Barcelona, Real Madrid and Athletico Madrid respectively in their first leg encounter with these big sides and would likely lose to these teams in the second leg presumably.

After much observation, i have to give Real Madrid a negative outlook.
Xabi Alonso is drowning in problems and no one is throwing him a life preserver.
Under these conditions, i see a recovery as difficult in the short term; let's see how it evolves.
At this point, Barcelona is the favorite to win La Liga

Talking about titles, it's difficult for Real Madrid to get in this situation. But I just want to see them make progress for the better and Xabi has to do that. Failing to win is normal and even if Xabi fails to win the title this season,. it won't be the first time Real Madrid have done so. If Xabi can show good progress, I think that's enough and next season they can show better things and of course win the title. But I can also understand why titles are the benchmark when we talk about Real Madrid, because this is a big team that is used to it.

[cozytrade]

Yet Barca remain at the top position followed by Real Madrid which makes it a bit difficult for Villarreal to break in and the reason why this might be difficult for Villarreal is because they failed to get a single point after facing the top three teams in the la liga this season, they lost to Barcelona, Real Madrid and Athletico Madrid respectively in their first leg encounter with these big sides and would likely lose to these teams in the second leg presumably.

After much observation, i have to give Real Madrid a negative outlook.
Xabi Alonso is drowning in problems and no one is throwing him a life preserver.
Under these conditions, i see a recovery as difficult in the short term; let's see how it evolves.
At this point, Barcelona is the favorite to win La Liga

Talking about titles, it's difficult for Real Madrid to get in this situation. But I just want to see them make progress for the better and Xabi has to do that. Failing to win is normal and even if Xabi fails to win the title this season,. it won't be the first time Real Madrid have done so. If Xabi can show good progress, I think that's enough and next season they can show better things and of course win the title. But I can also understand why titles are the benchmark when we talk about Real Madrid, because this is a big team that is used to it.

Barcelo is by all means worthy of their title favorites in the La Liga since they appear stronger and more predictable compared to competitors at the given time. Real Madrid on the other hand is struggling with changing under Xabi Alonso. He has inherited some of the issues and he should not have expected to achieve success overnight. Negative short term outlook is acceptable, but what is most important this season is apparent improvement in structure, identity and performance. At Madrid, titles are the order of the day however, the building phases are football. In the case of Villarreal, they cannot even score a point against the top three, which explains why they will not be able to penetrate the title race. The principle of consistency against large teams is the indicator of a challenge to La Liga.