Today closes the 29th day of the Santander League with two games that affect the top of the leaderboard. On Monday the matches Levante 1-1 Sevilla and Betis 2-2 Granada were played, on Wednesday Getafe 0-0 Espanyol, Villarreal 1-0 Mallorca, Barcelona 2-0 Leganés. And yesterday Valladolid 0-0 Celta, Eibar 2-2 Athletic de Bilbao and Osasuna 0-5 Atlético de Madrid were played. After the first two draws, the win came in the last game of the day thanks to the return of João Félix and the new role of Marcos Llorente (Moarata and Carrasco rounded off the result). Thus, there are only two matches left to end the day: Alavés – Real Sociedad and Real Madrid – Valencia.
Today's games Thursday, June 18
Santander League
Alavés – Real Sociedad (19:30 H – Movistar LaLiga)
Both teams will compete in the Basque derby with very different objectives. On the one hand, Alavés will try to add the three points to continue climbing positions and avoid last minute scares with the descent. Real Sociedad, for its part, seeks to regain the Champions League position that Atlético de Madrid took from it last night. Locals will not be able to count on Pacheco (sanction), while visitors have noticeable losses such as Merino, Illarramendi, Guevara and Sangalli.
Real Madrid – Valencia (22:00 H – Movistar LaLiga)
Real Madrid does not want to lose the trail of the leader and for this they will have to deal with one of the strongest teams in Spanish football: Valencia. All the spotlights will point to the young Ferran Torres, who is raining offers every time he plays and whom the white team has tried to sign since he was a youngster. Rotations are planned for Zinedine Zidane's team and it could be a new opportunity for Isco to start as a starter.
First Division Classification
Barcelona (64 points), leader, leads Real Madrid by five, with one less game. Sevilla is third (51), followed by Atlético de Madrid (49), which now occupies the last place in the Champions League. The Europa League is for Real Sociedad and Getafe. Although both tie at 47 points, Real Sociedad must play today, as they are missing a match. The decrease is marked by Mallorca with 25 points, while in the last two places in the classification there has been a change during this day. Espanyol is no longer the last (23 points), with Leganés (22) being the new red lantern.
LaLiga Smartbank
Numancia – Cádiz (19:30 H – Movistar LaLiga / Goal)
Cádiz will leave Soria with the intention of recovering the leadership at all costs, since Zaragoza's victory on Tuesday has taken them out of a place, at least temporarily, to which they had held on well. The Numancia, meanwhile, aims to get as far away from the relegation places as possible. Play with fire and today's test will not be easy at all.
Huesca – Mirandés (19:30 H – Movistar LaLiga)
Huesca has almost the same distance both the possibility of being a leader and staying out of the playoffs. Precisely on the lookout for the qualifying rounds is the Mirandés, who with a victory would tighten the classification even more. Both teams arrive at the match with significant losses: Pulido, Juan Carlos and Ferreiro by Huesca and Franquesa and Melsa in the away draw.
Alcorcón – Sporting de Gijón (21:45 H – Movistar LaLiga)
Today's match is a somewhat deceptive mid-table fight, as a win or loss brings you very close to playoff or relegation positions. No team can afford a stumble. The potters recover Arribas, Boateng and Pomares. Djukic's do not recover any cash.
Second Division Classification
Even with 22 clubs, there are few competitions in the world as tight as the Smartbank League. Zaragoza is provisional leader with 58 points in the absence of what Cadiz does today, which has one less. Almería (53 points), Huesca (53), Girona (49) and Elche (47). The latter tie on points with Rayo Vallecano, who was out of the playoffs for the time being. Lugo, Deportivo and Oviedo tie at 37 points, but only the first are saved from some relegation places among which are also Extremadura (32) and Racing de Santander (29).
Matches on Friday June 19
LaLiga Santander
Granada – Villarreal (19:30 H – Movistar LaLiga)
Mallorca – Leganés (19:30 H – Movistar LaLiga)
Seville – Barcelona (22:00 H – Movistar LaLiga)
LaLiga Smartbank
Elche – Girona (19:30 H – Movistar LaLiga / Gol)