La Liga 2012, Week 35: Barcelona Keeps Madrid From Clinching Title

Had Barcelona lost, Madrid would have clinched the title, but because they trampled over Rayo, the race for the title is still technically alive. Even so, with Madrid seven points up and just three matches to play, they need just a win to make the title officially theirs and that could come as Wednesday.

At the outset, Valencia seemed to have the upper hand over a Málaga side that looked nervous as they prepared for their Champions League push. Roberto Soldado was called offsides on a series of tremendous runs; had it not been for a few inches, they would have resulted in a couple of obvious scoring opportunities. In the 14th minute, however, Eliseu broke through Valencia’s defense, and lashed a shot off Guaita’s goal--while the play came against the run of play initially, it seemed to spark a renaissance for Málaga, who began to push up the field with more authority. Guaita was forced into action on a series of plays directly after the shot off the bar, and then on 27 minutes, Málaga struck. Gámez, streaking up from the right back position, dropped a cross into the center of the area; Camacho, who brilliantly jumped in front of the Valencia defense, knocked the ball in with his chest (or his back--it was unclear, even on replays).

After the goal, Valencia seemed to shrink away from the ball. They no longer looked like the confident, strong side that reached the semifinals of the Europa League. They looked like a team afraid of their predicament, scared of finishing out of the Champions League. And Málaga grew, spreading themselves over the field, attacking with intent.

Yes and no. To be honest, the title race looks to be pretty much over, though you won’t hear anything like that come from the Santiago Bernabéu. Real Madrid doesn’t drop points very much, and there are only four games left. But that doesn’t mean that it won’t be fun to watch these sides battle to the very last point--and there are still the important matters of relegation and European contention to figure out.

So soldier on, la Liga fans! There’s still work to be done here.