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COLUMN: Who will punch their tickets in La Liga's thrilling European race?

Sports EditorBy 10 Mins Read
COLUMN: Who will punch their tickets in La Liga's thrilling European race?


With eight video games to go in La Liga – until you’re Villarreal – the European race has been supercharged in La Liga this season. Who will make it to the remainder of the continent come September although?

Spain’s UEFA Coefficient Flex Means Extra La Liga Groups in Europe 

Spain’s topflight will quickly money in on their stellar UEFA coefficient this season. Sitting fairly in second place behind England, Spain’s coefficient appears to be like rock-solid, with Italy unlikely to crash the social gathering. Which means La Liga is all however assured a fifth Champions League spot subsequent season. 

In the meantime, the Copa del Rey closing pits Actual Madrid in opposition to Barcelona, each already Champions League-bound. This case shuffles the deck: the Europa League spot normally reserved for the Copa winner will get handed all the way down to the league standings. Because it stands, seventh place will e book a Europa League ticket, and eighth place will get Convention League entry. And will Athletic Membership elevate the Europa League trophy, Spain might unlock an unheralded sixth Champions League slot. That may push the seventh and eighth locations into the Europa League, and the ninth place punches a ticket to the Convention League.  

It’s chaos in one of the best ways, as groups that may usually be concerned in an everyday low-stakes midtable melee now even have an opportunity at Europe. With the highest six just about locked in (Barcelona, Actual Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Athletic Membership, Actual Betis, and Villarreal), the highlight shifts to the pack of hopefuls jostling for seventh, eighth – and possibly ninth. As of the eighth of April, 2025, Celta lead the pack with 43 factors, adopted by Actual Sociedad (41), Rayo Vallecano and RCD Mallorca (each 40), Getafe (39), and Sevilla (36). Let’s dive into the contenders and see who can crash the continental events.

 

Celta Vigo: Away Days, Huge Desires 

For the primary time in nearly a decade, it seems like everybody in Vigo – coach, gamers, administration, followers – are all rowing in the identical course, and that course is seemingly Europe. They may not be the deepest or most gifted squad on this race, however they actually really feel just like the strongest collective, with a robust possession and urgent recreation plan. Right here at Soccer España, we love speaking about Giraldez’s Celta, and we’ve a number of articles analysing them right here and right here.  

They’ve turned Balaidos right into a fortress and at the moment are the joint fourth-best crew at residence, alongside Athletic Membership.  The large pending project for them comes away from residence. Within the first 11 away video games of the season, Celta solely managed 5 factors, however issues have improved within the final two months. Celta haven’t misplaced an away recreation since their defeat in opposition to Valencia on the 2nd of February, choosing up attracts in opposition to Atletico and Girona and victories in opposition to Actual Valladolid and Mallorca.  

One menace for Celta is that their squad remains to be comparatively skinny. A Madroa, the Celta academy, has been very productive and Giraldez has taken benefit of it, however this aspect, for instance, nonetheless depends closely on a 37-year-old Iago Aspas for objectives. The opposite menace is that the highway forward is brutal, with away video games in opposition to Actual Madrid and Barcelona, and duels in opposition to direct rivals for European spots: Villarreal, Sevilla, Actual Sociedad, Rayo Vallecano, and Getafe.  

 

Actual Sociedad: Expertise-Wealthy, Aim-Shy 

No crew on this battle has extra uncooked expertise than Actual Sociedad. On their day, they’re a European-worthy aspect, no query. Nevertheless, no crew has underwhelmed extra within the closing third.

Regardless of dropping Robin Le Normand final summer time, Nayef Aguerd stepped up as an alternative, whereas Martin Zubimendi continues to anchor the midfield reliably. These two are arguably the MVPs who’ve stored la Actual’s defensive efficiency regular. Imanol Alguacil’s crew is relentlessly aggressive – on a very good day or a nasty one, they all the time present as much as no less than struggle and compete.

Photograph by Actual Sociedad

The evident crimson flag is their offence. With simply 30 objectives, they’re the fourth worst within the league: merely unacceptable for a crew of their standing. There was a gradual erosion of attacking expertise over the past six years. Gamers like Martin Odegaard, David Silva, Alexander Isak, and Alexander Sorloth have come and gone, however their replacements have but to achieve an analogous degree and consistency. In the meantime, accidents have made Mikel Oyarzabal into a special, much less impactful participant. Takefusa Kubo has been the assault’s most harmful performer, but his output alone isn’t adequate to pull the crew again into European rivalry. 

Confronted with this expertise drain, Alguacil has struggled to seek out new options, and as outcomes slip, frustrations are mounting. So as to add additional uncertainty into the combination, Alguacil’s contract expires on the finish of the season, and there’s no signal of renewal but. 

Rayo Vallecano: Punching Above Their Weight 

Perez shakes hands with Flick.
Picture by way of RODOLFO MOLINA / DIARIO AS

If Rayo Vallecano make it into Europe, it’ll be one of many nice underdog tales of the season. This squad was constructed to keep away from relegation (barely), not continental nights. Rayo have one of many three lowest revenues and wage payments in La Liga, and the oldest common beginning XI within the league. But right here they’re, mixing it up with golf equipment that spend a number of instances greater than them. 

Inigo Perez’s aspect are balanced. Not nice at something, however midtable strong throughout the board. The centre-back duo of Abdul Mumin and Florian Lejeune has offered dependable efficiency with only a few main errors, backed up by Augusto Batalla, who’s proven as a lot reliability as he has persona. Their midfield has an honest steadiness between ball restoration and clever distribution.  

Their assault has no stars, however Rayo’s direct type of play and depth can typically stretch opponents and create extra space for the second-line attackers – Isi Palazon, Alvaro Garcia, Jorge de Frutos – to reach on the field and shoot.

The large fear? Depth. The squad is paper skinny. You get the sense that in the event that they lose even one or two starters, the wheels might come off. For instance, it’s arduous to think about Espanyol scoring 4 in opposition to them like they did final weekend have been Mumin match and obtainable.

 

Mallorca: Fortress Soccer with a European Twist? 

There was an expectation that Mallorca would evolve offensively below Jagoba Arrasate. Nevertheless, the aspect’s id stays similar to what it was below Javier Aguirre: robust, gritty, and cussed. 

Enzo Boyomo comes up against Muriqi.
Picture by way of RCD Mallorca

Mallorca excels at irritating opponents by way of a compact and disciplined low-to-mid block, and so they do it effectively. Antonio Raillo and co. have successfully turned Son Moix right into a no-fly zone with their aerial dominance. Their physicality, self-discipline, and defensive construction are tailored for knockout-style soccer. In the event that they do make it to Europe, don’t be shocked in the event that they thrive. 

Their Achilles’ heel is evident: objectives. Solely Leganes and Valladolid have scored fewer this season. Vedat Muriqi continues to guide the assault however much less successfully than in earlier years, lagging a bit behind his anticipated objectives. If Mallorca rating first, they’re extremely arduous to interrupt down, but when they go behind, the wrestle feels all too acquainted.

Thankfully, regardless of the calendar that includes Actual Madrid and Barcelona away video games, the remainder of the schedule isn’t as dangerous as a few of their opponents. 

 

Getafe: Bordalas Fashion Effectivity 

Say what you need about Getafe’s aesthetics – this crew will get outcomes. Jose Bordalas will get outcomes. La Liga’s slick-haired villain has returned to do precisely what he all the time does. Getafe have conceded the third fewest objectives within the league (25). This consequence stems from a crew defends and presses intensely, that is aware of the right way to break down opposition assaults, and a David Soria on a very good shot-stopping run. The memes write themselves once you realise that their high scorer is defensive midfielder Mauro Arambarri.

Jose Bordalas

Much like Rayo, Getafe are a crew who don’t have anything to lose on this race. This squad was constructed to keep away from relegation, to not struggle for Europe. Much like Mallorca, it is a crew that’s higher at defending a consequence than chasing one. Their offence (30 objectives), stays one of many worst within the league, however the return of Borja Mayoral has helped a bit on this division.

 

Sevilla: Lukebakio Lightning, Id Disaster 

Nobody anticipated Sevilla to be right here – not in a great way. After years of European regularity, they’ve stumbled into midtable spots. It’ll take a while to rebuild and seem like a top-half crew once more.  

Dodi Lukebakio has been the brightest spot on this Sevilla aspect and their foremost argument, carrying the assault with tempo, objectives, and power. With out him, this aspect would possible be nearer to a relegation scrap than a European push.  

Structurally, the crew remains to be a piece in progress. As Soccer España defined in final week’s column, coach Garcia Pimienta has needed to sacrifice a few of his possession-heavy type in favour of one thing extra direct – one thing extra suited to the gamers at his disposal. It’s a compromise, and it reveals.  

Amongst these six groups, they really feel the least cohesive. Nevertheless, they’re nonetheless 5 factors away from the eighth place, so there may be nonetheless a shot at making it into Europe.  

 

Who’s Getting Their Passport Stamped? 

It’s a brutal, stunning mess. Six groups, two (possibly three) spots. These groups nonetheless have loads of duels in opposition to one another within the subsequent eight match days, so each purpose, each level, and each slip-up might be the distinction between a European journey and a summer time of what ifs. 

To this author, Celta and Actual Sociedad nonetheless have the strongest claims to the seventh and eighth spots. Celta have a transparent plan and construction, and most significantly, they’ve everybody rowing in the identical course in a manner they hadn’t in years. Actual Sociedad has the expertise, and even their baseline degree may be greater than that of the opposite rivals. The ninth spot is a bit trickier to guess: as Mallorca have arguably extra expertise than the opposite sides on this struggle, even when they’ve misplaced plenty of momentum in 2025. Rayo seem like a extra steady collective, but when Mumin’s harm continues to punish them so severely, Vallecas turns into a tighter spot for the house aspect. Whatever the consequence, this struggle for the final European spots is likely one of the large nailbiters in direction of the top of the season.  





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