How Real Madrid fare to previous league champions who struggled to back it up

Tom White 15:13 15/01/2018
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  • Defending champions Real Madrid are languishing in fourth place in LaLiga, trailing leaders Barcelona by 19 points.

    Here, Press Association Sport’s Tom White compares their plight to previous champions who struggled to back it up.

    Real Madrid, LaLiga, 2017-18

    Last season was a wonderful one for Real, who won the league by three points ahead of Barca despite a draw and a loss in the two meetings with their arch-rivals.

    They added the Champions League as Cristiano Ronaldo scored 42 goals in all competitions.

    Midway through this season, with Barca out of sight, they are also 10 points behind city rivals Atletico Madrid and six behind Valencia, albeit with a game in hand on all three teams.

    Ronaldo has only four league goals, though he added nine in a dominant Champions League group stage performance.

    Title season: P38, W29, D6, L3, F106, A41, GD +65, Pts 93

    Following season (to date): P18, W9, D5, L4, F32, A17, GD +15, Pts 32

    Following season (pro-rated to 38 games): P38, W19, D11, L8, F68, A36, GD +32, Pts 68

    Cristiano Ronaldo of Real Madrid

    Chelsea, Premier League, 2015-16

    Chelsea sealed the 2015 title with three games to spare, adding the League Cup for good measure.

    But with star striker Diego Costa a sulky and indisciplined presence and playmaker Eden Hazard failing to recapture his PFA player of the year form, the Blues slumped to 10th the next season as Leicester stunningly won the league only to suffer a similar slump as defending champions.

    Title season: P38, W26, D9, L3, F73, A32, GD +41, Pts 87

    Following season: P38, W12, D14, L12, F59, A53, GD +6, Pts 50

    Chelsea - Premier League

    Manchester City, Division One, 1937-38

    “Typical City” has endured since the days of two points for a win, and goal average.

    A year after winning the league in swashbuckling fashion, scoring 107 goals in 42 games, they contrived to be relegated after winning just two away games all season and finishing second-bottom.

    Remarkably, they were the division’s top scorers with 80 goals, three more than champions Arsenal. They were also only 16 points behind the Gunners, and five off 10th-placed Chelsea, in a tightly-packed table.

    Title season: P42, W22, D13, L7, F107, A61, GA 1.754, Pts 57*

    Following season: P42, W14, D8, L20, F80, A77, GA 1.039, Pts 36*

    Nurnberg, Bundesliga, 1968-69

    Another team to be relegated while supposedly defending their title, Nurnberg won the Bundesliga for the first time in 1967-68 but after a clear-out of several veteran players, they crashed to 17th the following year.

    They took nine years to get back to the top flight and have yo-yoed since, including a brief exile in the third tier amid financial problems.

    Title season: P34, W19, D9, L6, F71, A37, GA 1.919, Pts 47*

    Following season: P34, W9, D11, L14, F45, A55, GA 0.818, Pts 29*

    Adelaide United, A-League, 2016-17

    The Reds topped the regular-season table by a point the previous year before beating Melbourne City and Western Sydney Wanderers in the Finals Series to clinch the title.

    There is no relegation in Australia but they followed up their success by finishing second bottom, only a point above Newcastle Jets and with barely a third of the points of champions Sydney FC.

    Title season: P27, W14, D7, L6, F45, A28, GD +17, Pts 49; beat Melbourne City 4-1 in semi-final, Western Sydney Wanderers 3-1 in grand final

    Following season: P27, W5, D8, L14, F25, A46, GD -21, Pts 23

    Adelaide United 2016-17

    Provided by Press Association Sport

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