Real Madrid secured the La Liga title by defeating Cadiz 3-0, and Girona's 4-2 victory over Barcelona sealed it, as coach Carlo Ancelotti described it as a well-deserved win.
Los Blancos won the championship for the 36th time after defeating Cadiz and Barcelona stumbled against Girona, allowing Madrid to claim the title.
Girona's thrilling win enabled them to qualify for their first-ever Champions League, marking a significant milestone for the Catalan minnows in only their fourth season in Spain's top division.
Ahead of the Champions League semi-final second-leg clash with Bayern, Ancelotti made extensive changes to his lineup, yet his players still managed to get the job done.
Brahim Diaz scored in the 51st minute to give Madrid the lead, and then assisted Jude Bellingham, before Joselu scored a third goal.
Ancelotti informed reporters that they had a remarkable campaign in La Liga.
He expressed that they had made minimal mistakes and rightfully earned the advantage.
Madrid's convincing win over Cadiz placed them 14 points ahead of last season's champions Barcelona, who were in third place with 12 points left to play for.
Following their second 4-2 victory over Barcelona this season, Girona is in second place, trailing Madrid by 13 points.
Real Madrid striker Joselu revealed to Real Madrid TV that they put in a tremendous effort on the field to experience moments like the one they had today.
He mentioned the presence of ambitious young players and happy veterans, highlighting the special nature of these moments.
Keeping in mind the second leg against Bayern, Ancelotti only included captain Nacho Fernandez from the starting line-up that secured a 2-2 draw in Bavaria this week.
Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois made his first appearance after a nine-month break due to a knee injury and didn't concede any goals.
Madrid midfielder Luka Modric, aged 38 years and 238 days, became the oldest player to represent the club in La Liga, surpassing Ferenc Puskas' record from 1965 by five days.
Although the visitors, currently in 18th place and fighting relegation, had a better first half, Madrid scored their goals in the second half.
Courtois made an excellent save to stop Chris Ramos early in the second half, and Madrid quickly took the lead.
Diaz received the ball from Modric on the edge of the area, made a smooth turn, and curled the ball into the top corner.
Bellingham, who came on as a substitute for Arda Guler, scored the second goal shortly after entering the game, following a great team play.
It was the 18th league goal of the season for the England international, keeping him in the running for the top scorer title.
Nacho made a fantastic run to set up Joselu for an easy finish in stoppage time, as Madrid added another goal.
Even though he is set to leave at the end of the season, the Bernabeu crowd praised the Spaniard for setting up Joselu's goal.
– 'Difficult to compete' –
Real Madrid were able to celebrate after Girona pulled off a comeback twice to defeat Barcelona in a thrilling match.
Barcelona took the lead with Andreas Christensen's goal after three minutes, but La Liga's top scorer Artem Dovbyk quickly equalized with his 20th goal of the season.
Robert Lewandowski put Barcelona ahead with a penalty after Lamine Yamal was fouled, but substitute Portu had a significant impact in the second half for Girona.
Michel Sanchez’s team scored two goals in two minutes to completely change the game. Portu scored the equaliser shortly after entering the game, and then assisted Miguel Gutierrez to put Girona in the lead.
Portu impressively scored the fourth goal to energize Girona’s small Montilivi stadium and kick off the celebration.
Girona played the Champions League music through the stadium sound system to give their supporters a taste of what's to come.
“It’s unfortunate, we struggle with any negative situation,” said Barcelona coach Xavi after Barcelona lost their title.
“In this way, it’s impossible to compete.”
AFP
