I was at a conference in Vitoria on Saturday, and nipped out late morning for a coffee with some other attendees. About to cross the busy main street, with the pedestrian icon still on green but flashing, up rumbled a large green coach which fortunately decided to let us continue to the other side. It was the Elche FC coach, and one of my colleagues remarked that it must have been on its way to play the local side Alavés, lying second in Segunda A. ‘No’ I corrected him. Alavés were playing Osasuna in the big clash on Sunday. A small debate ensued, but I assured the walking group that Elche must have been on their way to play Mirandés, not so far from Vitoria. I was right, and they won the game 2-1. However, one colleague quipped correctly ‘I bet they didn’t pass through Eibar’, in reference to the fact that Elche would still be in the top flight had it not been for their own financial irregularities and Eibar’s lack of them – despite the fact that the latter finished in the relegation positions and Elche didn’t. The win on Saturday afternoon put Elche up to 8th, two points shy of the play-off spots, but that wasn’t quite the point of this introduction.
With La Liga now down to its final ten-game phase (there are nine ‘jornadas’ left), the teams in the danger zone begin to play with more freedom – some might say desperation – in an attempt to save themselves from the impending financial and morale-sapping disaster of relegation. Eibar themselves collapsed spectacularly in the second half of last season but would have survived legitimately had not the bottom pack caught up. The historical data of La Liga’s 38-game framework suggests that the safety mark is 40 points, although this benchmark can alter, according to the season. The point is, however, that the final 10-game sprint takes place in the context of mathematical reality. Managers involved in the relegation zone sit down wearily, look at the games left to play, and make their calculations. The conclusions drawn tend to affect the league in unpredictable ways, and football-pools aficionados are either way off the mark or make a sudden fortune. Gary Neville, for example, is an experienced player but an inexperienced manager with regard to this aspect of La Liga. His team Valencia made the short hop across town to play their less fashionable neighbours Levante, currently bottom of the table. Anyone who has watched Levante this season will have arrived at the same conclusion – they’re short on quality but not on effort. You won’t beat them by strolling around the park, which is exactly what Valencia did. Levante deservedly won 1-0 and are now in a more promising situation with regard to a late-season escape. With Granada still to play on Monday night, Levante have only three points fewer than Rayo Vallecano and Getafe, in 16th and 17th place respectively. Hope thus springs eternal, and this sort of situation can be problematic for the sides at the other end of the table, still hoping for greater glories.
CRÓNICA | El @valenciacf pierde en el derbi ante el @LevanteUD (1-0) ➡ https://t.co/2FFJOir5ST pic.twitter.com/5vZ8afHY1n
— Valencia CF (@valenciacf) March 13, 2016
The Las Palmas vs Real Madrid game was a classic example of these circumstances. The Canary Islanders were on a three-game consecutive run of wins, but have been playing some decent stuff all season. Like Levante and Granada, they are not automatic relegation fodder, despite statistical appearances. There are no really weak sides in La Liga this season. Real Madrid had played in midweek against Roma and were probably not looking forward to visiting a side that still needed the points. The game finished in a 2-1 win for Madrid, but it was desperate stuff from them, somehow salvaging a win in the final minute with a headed goal from Casemiro (at the moment Real Madrid’s best player), just after Las Palmas had deservedly equalised with an excellent finish from the threatening Willian José. Madrid’s tactical approach was curious, allowing Las Palmas possession and trying to play on the counter – but then taking off Gareth Bale who is logically the most useful fellow to have around in those situations. It seemed an odd move by Zidane, and it failed to improve matters. Madrid seem defensively fragile these days, increasingly reliant on their excellent goalkeeper Keylor Navas. Sergio Ramos scored the opener but was at fault for Las Palmas’ goal and is not having a particularly inspired season. To complete his night, he was sent off for a second yellow late on. The best player on the park was Las Palmas’ Momo, hardly a household name. They visit stuttering Real Sociedad next week, and will fancy their chances.
Sporting de Gijón seem to be bucking this trend and lost again, 1-0 at Málaga. That’s four on the trot, and they haven’t won since late January at Valencia. They seem to be the club most in decline, along with Getafe who haven’t won in nine games. It’s at this crucial stage that teams on a downward spiral get caught in the updraft of those below who have stared reality in the face and have begun to do something about it. Getafe will now be making their calculations, having probably gone to the Camp Nou on Saturday with few expectations and the vague hope that Barcelona might have been more interested in their midweek Champions League tie with Arsenal. Well – coach Luis Enrique rested Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets, Dani Alves and Ivan Rakitic but it made little difference. Barcelona are on such a roll at the moment that not even the bubonic plague would stop them. Leo Messi, far from resting on his considerable laurels just gets better and better (with the curious exception of his penalty-taking) and poor Getafe simply couldn’t cope. Going forward they competed and didn’t look so bad, but at the back they were cruelly exposed. They’re one my tips to go down, but their next two games, against Eibar and Rayo, might give them hope.
At the other end of the table, the most enthralling encounter was the Sevilla vs Villarreal game, won by the hosts 4-2. Fifth placed Sevilla had to win it, in order to give themselves some sort of chance of catching the visitors, who lie in fourth place, now only five points above them. Check out Yehven Konoplyanka’s goal, if you can pronounce his surname, although Cedric Bakambu’s second for Villarreal wasn’t bad either. But ‘uuuf’, as the Spanish say. Sevilla seem to have some excellent players – Kevin Gameiro, Michael Krohn-Dehli (the player who ran most kilometres last season in La Liga, although he ran them for Celta), Ever Banega (when he feels like it), Benoit Temoulinas – and it must be a good sign when a player of Fernando Llorente’s quality can’t get a game. You never know – much more of this and the Sevilla fans might even admit to liking their coach, the strangely unpopular Unai Emery. Maybe it’s all that grease with which he plasters down his hair, because apart from the away form and an apparent tendency to over-cautiously protect narrow leads, he would seem to be doing a good job.
Atlético Madrid stay in second place after beating Deportivo 3-0 at home, and can still hope that the eight-point difference that separates them from Barcelona can be breached, if they keep plugging away and praying for a collapse of form from the Catalans. Stranger things have happened, but whatever the outcome, the season is again turning out to be a satisfying one for them. Still in the Champions League with a decent chance of progressing to the quarter-finals, and with only twelve goals conceded in the league, the best side in Madrid have reasons to be cheerful. Next week they visit Sporting, in a game that perfectly illustrates the potential of the desperation factor, and Granada entertain Rayo in the day’s dog-eat-dog encounter. Real Madrid entertain Sevilla, and should the visitors claim their first win of the season away, the vibrations on the Richter Scale will be considerable.
