“They are letting us dream of LaLiga; and we like to dream.” Daniel Alves summed up this Sunday the state of illusion in which the Barça dressing room floats in recent weeks. A team that has a good time playing has gotten rid of complexes and losing mentality. And that he feels capable of everything, more from 0-4. “As long as there is the slightest option, we are going to try,” assured Busquets. Barça’s warning is that being among the first four, finally, is not going to be enough. He will go for LaLiga.
But the calendar does not give Barça too many options to cling to the title except for the catastrophe of Madrid, which does not have too many stones in the way. Or, at least, similar to those of the Barça team. Back from the break, the azulgrana will face Sevilla in a key game. Then, and after facing Eintracht in Frankfurt, they will travel to the Levante field and receive Cádiz and Rayo Vallecano in the late match. Barça will then be equal to games and will check where they are to see if they can hit the final assault. Direct rivals will come. On matchday 33, they will travel to the Reale Arena to face Real Sociedad and on matchday 35, against Betis. In between, Mallorca will arrive at the Camp Nou. In the last three days, Barça will play against Celta, Getafe and Villarreal. To be champion, Barça would need to win the 30 points (that would mean beating Sevilla after the break and overcoming it) and that Madrid left nine, since the azulgrana guaranteed goalaverage this Sunday.
Ancelotti’s men travel to Vigo after the break and then host Quique’s Getafe. Then they will travel to Seville to face Lopetegui’s men at the Sánchez Pizjuán, who are no longer in Europe (the whites will have to face Chelsea those first two weeks after the break). After Seville, I traveled to Pamplona to play against an Osasuna team that is no longer at stake but is tough at El Sadar. Espanyol will visit the Bernabéu on matchday 34. Then, Atlético awaits Madrid at the Wanda with the doubt of whether they will also see each other in the semifinals of the Champions League. The end of the League has a comfortable antepenultimate day, with Levante evicted; but two final matches that could be dangerous. Trip to Cadiz. Those of Sergio could be playing the permanence. And, finally, a Madrid-Betis on the last day. If Pellegrini’s men play the Champions League, the match would take on a brutal significance.
For its part, this is the calendar of Sevilla, which is still second in LaLiga: Barça (away), Granada (home), Real Madrid (home), Levante (away), Cádiz (home), Villarreal (away), Mallorca (home), Atlético (away) and Athletic (home). It seems that Lopetegui’s men are now only in the fight for Champions positions, but last season they reacted well after being eliminated in Dortmund and, if Barça considers itself entitled to dream, Sevilla can also legitimately have it. The calendar gives few options to Madrid’s rivals, but to win LaLiga you have to be well in all four seasons and Ancelotti’s team still has to get through the spring.
