Real Madrid are champions of Spain for the 36th time after their 3-0 win over Cádiz was followed by a 4-2 defeat for Barcelona at Girona that meant Carlo Ancelotti’s side’s lead at the top of La Liga is unassailable.
Goals from Brahim Díaz, Jude Bellingham and Joselu earned Madrid an eventually comfortable win over lowly Cádiz. With four games remaining, Real climbed to 87 points and extended their lead to 13 points over second-placed Girona and 14 clear of Barcelona in third.
Real’s manager, Ancelotti, rested several key players ahead of their Champions League semi-final against Bayern Munich and his side did more than enough to secure the three points.
After dominating the first half, they finally managed to break the deadlock with Díaz first netting a curling shot from the edge of the box in the 51st minute. He then assisted the substitute Bellingham to score with a tidy finish from close range in the 68th minute before Joselu tapped into an empty net in a counterattack in added time.
“We have to put our joy on ice because we have a very important game ahead of us on Wednesday,” Ancelotti said before Barcelona had lost. “We have played a spectacular Spanish league season. We have been very consistent and rarely slipped up. The advantage we have is deserved. We have to recover, rest and play our best against Bayern.”
Girona’s win against Barcelona secured this season’s surprise package a spot in Europe for the first time as they qualified for next season’s Champions League.
Andreas Christensen scored in the third minute to give Barça the lead but Girona hit back a minute later when La Liga’s top scorer, Artem Dovbyk, headed in the equaliser.
Robert Lewandowski put the visitors back in front from the penalty spot just before the break. However, in the 65th minute, in his first action after coming off the bench, Portu netted the equaliser and Miguel Gutiérrez scored from a rebound two minutes later to give Girona the lead. A stunning volley from Portu in the 74th minute sealed the win.
“It’s incredible to look at your shirt and experience this. There is nothing more beautiful than living this,” Portu told DAZN, with tears rolling down his face.
“I had a thorn in my side with this club. A few years ago, I experienced the other side, which was relegation and I felt very responsible because I played a lot. Today I made amends with the fans and I can smile again.”
Bayern Munich suffered a 3-1 loss at Stuttgart and an injury to Raphaël Guerreiro on Saturday in their last Bundesliga game before the Champions League semi-final second leg at Real Madrid. Guerreiro went off early with what looked like a muscular injury and is a doubt for Wednesday’s decisive match in Madrid.
Borussia Dortmund’s B-team warmed up for Tuesday’s semi-final at Paris Saint-Germain with a 5-1 rout of visiting Augsburg.
Dortmund’s veteran Marco Reus scored one goal and set up another in his first match since it was confirmed he will be leaving his hometown club after a 12-year stint at the end of the season.
Dortmund’s coach, Edin Terzic, made 10 changes to the team that beat PSG 1-0 on Wednesday, with only the goalkeeper Gregor Kobel keeping his position.
Terzic’s Bayern counterpart, Thomas Tuchel, made six changes from his team that drew 2-2 with Madrid in Munich on Tuesday, with Guerreiro, Alphonso Davies, Aleksandar Pavlović, Serge Gnabry, Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting and Mathys Tel all starting in place of Noussair Mazraoui, Konrad Laimer, Leon Goretzka, Thomas Müller and Leroy Sané (all substitutes), and Jamal Musiala (not in squad).
But his preparations suffered an early blow with Guerreiro going off injured in the 17th minute. Stuttgart’s defender Leonidas Stergiou opened the scoring in the 29th after playing a one-two with Deniz Undav. It was the 22-year-old Switzerland defender’s first Bundesliga goal.
Harry Kane equalised in the 37th minute after a dubious penalty award. TV replays showed minimal contact between Waldemar Anton and Serge Gnabry, who went down clutching his face. But Kane did not let it put him off as he scored his 44th goal in 44 games for Bayern.
Jeong Woo-yeong scored Stuttgart’s second goal in the 83rd after combining with fellow substitute Silas Katompa Mvumpa, before Silas sealed the win in stoppage time. Stuttgart cut the gap on second-placed Bayern to two points with two rounds remaining. Both were already assured of Champions League qualification.
Wolfsburg defeated already relegated Darmstadt 3-0 at home and Werder Bremen drew 2-2 with Borussia Mönchengladbach.
