Lionel Messi and company look to be running away with La Liga. Heading into the Barcelona vs Valencia match on Sunday at the Mestalla, the Catalan club is unbeaten with 11 wins and one draw. Barcelona is sitting on 34 points, 10 ahead of both Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid, the only other two clubs to have won La Liga in the past dozen years.
Cristiano Ronaldo is having a no-good, very bad time in La Liga this season, and we have the stats to prove it. Never mind the one goal, this goes far deeper than that.
Scrutinizing the goalkeeper position, more so than any other, requires us to expand the metric of analysis to incorporate the one asset that’s valued above all others in a shot-stopper: consistency. That’s why, although a plethora of recent statistics might tell us otherwise, many would still pony for Gianluigi Buffon over, say, Marc-Andre ter Stegen as the world’s finest keeper. One’s been at the top of his craft for over 20 years, the other for just a few.
El Clasico may not mean much this year, with Barcelona having opened up a 10-point lead on Real Madrid atop La Liga.
Or El Clasico may mean much more than usual. If Real Madrid win and get a few bad Barcelona results they could be right back in this thing.
There was one clear winner from the Madrid derby: Barcelona. The Real Madrid vs. Atletico Madrid match ended in a 0-0 draw, leaving both clubs 10 points behind Barcelona, which itself won 3-0 over Leganes in Madrid on Saturday.
Real Madrid travel to Atletico’s Wanda Metropolitano for the first time ever on Saturday for the 161st league version of the Madrid Derby. While the setting will be new, the stakes remain unchanged, although the pressure emanating in this weekend’s fixture will be one of desperation rather than one fueled by a sense of forthcoming glory.
In this week's Hablaliga The18's Giselle Cesín breaks down the top 10 players in La Liga so far this season. If you liked this video check out last week's Hablaliga video.
1. Messi
Messi’s 12 goals and three assists have him leading the race for La Liga Player of the Year, and Barcelona at the top of the table.
2. Isco
Real Madrid are not having a great season so far, but Isco has turned himself into one of the best attackers in the world.