There are coronations which provide unsuspected emotions, commensurate with the disappointments and expectations which preceded them; supporters of Bayer Leverkusen, recent German champions, can attest to this. There are others on which we barely take the time to dwell, our gaze already being turned towards the next one. Real Madrid players are destined for this category.
The prestigious Spanish football club won a 36th national championship title on Saturday May 4. The Merengues were in front of the television when it was made official in the evening. Indeed, Real Madrid needed to win at home against Cadiz in the afternoon and for its rival, FC Barcelona, not to win, a little later, on the pitch in Girona.
This scenario came true. In the afternoon, Real Madrid beat Cadiz 3-0, thanks to goals from Brahim Diaz (52nd), Jude Bellingham (68th) and Joselu (90th 4). At the start of the evening, Barça lost heavily against the Gironese (2-4).
There will still be four days of the championship remaining after this weekend, but the Madrilenians now have a thirteen-point lead over their first competitor, which mathematically assures them first place in the final. Note that Girona is Real's new runner-up, since the surprise team of the season takes advantage of its victory to overtake its Catalan neighbor.
Bellingham, a disconcerting maturity
This title of Spanish champion is surely the last on the list of Croatian veteran Luka Modric. At the end of his contract, and almost 39 years old, the Croatian veteran could leave the club this summer. “As talent cannot be duplicated, the legacy that Modric will leave is a treasure made of professionalism, discretion, responsibility, dedication…”, flatters Jorge Valdano, club figure and writer.
In truth, the suspense for the title race was already over since the clasico of the 32nd day (out of 38): Real Madrid had dominated Barça (3-2), at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium, thanks to a goal by Jude Bellingham in added time.
For his first season in the White House, the English midfielder displays a disconcerting maturity at the age of 20. “Never before has a foreign player had such an impact in Madrid, so early and so young,” the newspaper El Pais recently wrote.
Landed last summer from Borussia Dortmund, Bellingham occupies the upper tip of the diamond aligned in midfield by coach Carlo Ancelotti. In his position, he has an impressive ratio of goals scored/matches played (18 to 26), the best in the championship.
A new role for Tchouaméni
Within the Madrid team, French internationals Eduardo Camavinga and Aurélien Tchouaméni have confirmed their status as important players, the second offering guarantees of security in a new role in central defense. “It feels like he’s been playing there all his life,” his Italian coach complimented him in February.
Despite the long unavailability of its pillars, defender Eder Militao and goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois (the Belgian made his return as starter against Cadiz), or the departure of Karim Benzema in the off-season, Real Madrid found the keys to do… Real Madrid. Failing to seduce every weekend, the training has no equivalent in Europe to demonstrate its collective strength in the face of adversity.
In the Champions League, the Spanish club can suffer from the opponent's play, which did not prevent it from eliminating the outgoing winner, Manchester City, in the quarter-finals, and obtaining a good draw (2 -2) traveling to Munich in the semi-final first leg, Tuesday April 30.
In La Liga, Real Madrid, Barça and Atlético de Madrid, the most financially powerful clubs, are used to competing for the spoils. This season, the Merengues are the most consistent, having conceded only one defeat so far, at their rival Madrid in September.
Vinicius targeted by racist acts
Moreover, four days before the end of the season, the presence of Girona on the La Liga podium somewhat shakes up the hierarchy of Spanish football, knowing that the same trio has monopolized all the places on the podium since the 2012-2013 season .
What does not change is the endemic problem that the country encounters with racism in stadiums, despite the federation's communication campaigns. Championship players have become “almost accustomed” to the racist behavior of some of the supporters, Jude Bellingham recently regretted.
His Brazilian teammate, star striker Vinicius, is frequently targeted by insults and/or chants of this type because he is black. “Since the first time I complained about racism in Spain, the situation has continued to get worse… They insult me because of the color of my skin so that I play less well on the pitch,” lamented -he, at the end of March. In the meantime, other players have been the target of racist acts, including Aurélien Tchouaméni during a championship match in Mallorca.
For the new Spanish champions, the national title celebrations will have to wait somewhat. They have a meeting on Wednesday, at the Bernabeu stadium, with Bayern Munich to play a Champions League semi-final return. Paris Saint-Germain is looking for its first “big-eared cup”, Real Madrid, its fifteenth…
