BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Real Madrid cruised to a record-extending 36th Spanish league title with a 13-point lead over second-place Girona with four games remaining.
Madrid regained the domestic title with a 3-0 win over Cadiz on Saturday, but then Barcelona lost 4-2 to Girona. Only a Barcelona victory would have stopped Madrid's celebrations.
Madrid also have the chance to add to their record of winning an unprecedented 14 European Cups. Madrid hosted Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday, with the sides tied in the semi-finals after drawing 2-2 in the first leg in Germany. The winner will be either Paris Saint-Germain or Borussia Dortmund in the final on June 1st.
Girona overtook Barcelona to move their Catalan rivals into third place, 14 points behind Madrid.
Carlo Ancelotti has completely overhauled his line-up ahead of the final against Bayern. Center back Nacho Fernandes was the only player to start against Cadiz in the first leg against Bayern.
Madrid have only lost once in 34 matchdays, defeating Barcelona in both league Clasicos and suffering one-sided defeats to Girona twice.
In the 51st minute of Saturday's match at the Santiago Bernabéu, Brahim Díaz broke through the Cadiz defense and fired a shot from the edge of the box into the top corner of the goal.
Jude Bellingham, a season standout, scored his second goal in the 68th minute after coming on as a substitute, putting the result beyond doubt with his 19th league goal of the season. Josel Mato added the third goal in stoppage time.
Barcelona's Xavi's side were dealt a double blow as Madrid clinched the title with a loss and Girona moved into second place with their second big win of the season in the Catalunya derby.
Girona opened up a 13-point lead over fifth-placed Athletic Bilbao, clinching a top-four finish and qualifying for the Champions League. If Barcelona maintains second place, they could be deprived of a lucrative spot in the Spanish Super Cup.
AP Soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
