Atletico Madrid wins La Liga title, pips Real in dramatic finale
Atletico Madrid have won the La Liga title on the final weekend of the season, as they secured a comeback win to finish above bitter rivals Real Madrid.
Diego Simeone’s side trailed lowly Valladolid 1-0 at half time but Angel Correa equalized with a corker and Luis Suarez clinically finished to secure the title and relegate Valladolid in the process.
Atletico finished above second-place Real Madrid by two points and third-place Barcelona by seven points, as they surged out of the gate this season but had a huge wobble in the final months of the campaign before getting the job done.
An emotional Suarez, who left Barcelona in the summer to join Atleti and scored 21 goals for Simeone’s side, had this to say at the final whistle: “Barcelona didn’t value me and Atletico opened their doors for me. I will always be grateful to this club for trusting in me.”
Simeone added: “Being champions at Atletico Madrid is different.”
The La Liga title is just their second in the last 25 years, and Atletico’s first since breaking up the Barcelona and Real Madrid monopoly in 2013-14.
This is Atletico’s eleventh title all-time, and marks the first time in seven seasons that neither Real Madrid or Barcelona have won the title.
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Atletico Madrid wins La Liga title, pips Real in dramatic finale – Video
By Joe Prince-WrightMay 22, 2021, 2:13 PM EDT
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Atletico Madrid have won the La Liga title on the final weekend of the season, as they secured a comeback win to finish above bitter rivals Real Madrid.
Diego Simeone’s side trailed lowly Valladolid 1-0 at half time but Angel Correa equalized with a corker and Luis Suarez clinically finished to secure the title and relegate Valladolid in the process.
Atletico finished above second-place Real Madrid by two points and third-place Barcelona by seven points, as they surged out of the gate this season but had a huge wobble in the final months of the campaign before getting the job done.
An emotional Suarez, who left Barcelona in the summer to join Atleti and scored 21 goals for Simeone’s side, had this to say at the final whistle: “Barcelona didn’t value me and Atletico opened their doors for me. I will always be grateful to this club for trusting in me.”
Simeone added: “Being champions at Atletico Madrid is different.”
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The La Liga title is just their second in the last 25 years, and Atletico’s first since breaking up the Barcelona and Real Madrid monopoly in 2013-14.
This is Atletico’s eleventh title all-time, and marks the first time in seven seasons that neither Real Madrid or Barcelona have won the title.
Close but no cigar for Real Madrid
As for Real Madrid, they surged back to beat Villarreal 2-1 at home on the final day of the season thanks to late goals from Karim Benzema and Luka Modric, but it wasn’t enough as Zinedine Zidane is expected to step down in the coming days.
Super League mastermind (no sarcasm here) Florentino Perez will have to sanction a huge rebuild of this Real squad this summer with Sergio Ramos, Raphael Varane and others expected to leave, while also looking for a new manager.
Europa League, Conference League places secured in wild finale
The Champions League spots were already confirmed ahead of the final round of games, and for quite some time now, as Barcelona beat Eibar 1-0 thanks to Antoine Griezmann’s fine strike to finish third in the table and Sevilla, who play on Sunday against Alaves will finish four.
The Europa League race went down to the wire and was absolutely bonkers as late goals changed the fortunes of several clubs.
Villarreal looked set to finish fifth as they led at Real in the 87th minute, but Real Madrid’s two late goals coupled with a late winner for Real Sociedad at Osasuna and an incredible Real Betis comeback from 2-0 down to win 3-2 at Celta Vigo, made sure that Unai Emery’s side finished seventh and out of the Europa League next season. Villarreal will be in the UEFA Conference League instead, but they do face Manchester United in the Europa League final in a few days’ time, and if they win that they’re in the Champions League.
Still, what a wild finish for those spots as David Silva led Sociedad to Europe and so too did Manuel Pellegrini as he masterminded a superb season for Real Betis.
Relegation confirmed
Elche saved themselves on the final day as they beat Athletic Bilbao 2-0 to spark wild celebrations, while Valladolid were relegated after losing to Atletico Madrid.
Huesca were also relegated as they drew with Valencia, while Eibar’s fate had already been sealed as they finished bottom of the table.
Below are the La Liga results in full, with the two final games of the season taking place on Sunday. You can also check out the La Liga standings, which will be fine viewing for Atleti fans.
La Liga results, fixtures
Celta Vigo 2-3 Real Betis
Eibar 0-1 Barcelona
Elche 2-0 Athletic Bilbao
Huesca 0-0 Valencia
Osasuna 0-1 Real Sociedad
Real Madrid 2-1 Villarreal
Valladolid 1-2 Atletico Madrid
Levante 2-2 Cadiz (Friday)
Sevilla v. Alaves – Sunday
Granada v. Getafe – Sunday
