final

COLUMN: Europe or Bust – The Race for La Liga’s Closing Tickets to the Continent

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 celebration. Which means that 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 often reserved for the Copa winner will get handed right down to the league standings. Because it stands, seventh place will ebook a Europa League ticket, and eighth place will get Convention League entry. And may Athletic Membership raise the Europa League trophy, Spain might unlock an unheralded sixth Champions League slot. That might push the seventh and eighth locations into the Europa League, and the ninth place punches a ticket to the Convention League.  

Commercial

It’s chaos in one of the best ways, as groups that might 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 perhaps 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, Large Desires 

For the primary time in virtually a decade, it looks like everybody in Vigo – coach, gamers, administration, followers – are all rowing in the identical route, and that route is seemingly Europe. They won’t be the deepest or most proficient 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 now we have just a few articles analysing them and .  

They’ve turned Balaidos right into a fortress and at the moment are the joint fourth-best crew at house, alongside Athletic Membership.  The massive pending task for them comes away from house. 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.  

Commercial

One risk for Celta is that their squad continues to be comparatively skinny. A Madroa, the Celta academy, has been very productive and Giraldez has taken benefit of it, however this facet, for instance, nonetheless depends closely on a 37-year-old Iago Aspas for targets. The opposite risk 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 facet, no query. Nevertheless, no crew has underwhelmed extra within the closing third.

Commercial

Regardless of dropping Robin Le Normand final summer season, Nayef Aguerd stepped up as a substitute, 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 an excellent day or a foul one, they at all times present as much as a minimum of struggle and compete.

Picture by Actual Sociedad

The obvious purple flag is their offence. With simply 30 targets, they’re the fourth worst within the league: merely unacceptable for a crew of their standing. There was a gentle erosion of attacking expertise during the last six years. Gamers like Martin Odegaard, David Silva, Alexander Isak, and Alexander Sorloth have come and gone, however their replacements have but to succeed in an analogous stage and consistency. In the meantime, accidents have made Mikel Oyarzabal into a distinct, much less impactful participant. Takefusa Kubo has been the assault’s most harmful performer, but his output alone isn’t adequate to tug the crew again into European competition. 

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 

Picture through 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 . But right here they’re, mixing it up with golf equipment that spend a number of occasions greater than them. 

Commercial

Inigo Perez’s facet are balanced. Not nice at something, however midtable stable 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 . Their midfield has a good 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 massive 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 exhausting to think about Espanyol scoring 4 in opposition to them like they did final weekend had been Mumin match and obtainable.

Mallorca: Fortress Soccer with a European Twist? 

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

Picture through RCD Mallorca

Mallorca excels at irritating opponents through 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. 

Commercial

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

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

Getafe: Bordalas Model 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 at all times does. Getafe have conceded the third fewest targets within the league (25). This final result stems from a crew defends and presses intensely, that is aware of the best way to break down opposition assaults, and a David Soria on a very good shot-stopping run. The memes write themselves while you realise that their prime scorer is defensive midfielder Mauro Arambarri.

Jose Bordalas

Just 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. Just like Mallorca, it is a crew that’s higher at defending a consequence than chasing one. Their offence (30 targets), stays one of many worst within the league, however the return of Borja Mayoral has helped a bit on this division.

Commercial

Sevilla: Lukebakio Lightning, Identification 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 should take a while to rebuild and appear like a top-half crew once more.  

Dodi Lukebakio has been the brightest spot on this Sevilla facet and their major argument, carrying the assault with tempo, targets, and vitality. With out him, this facet would doubtless be nearer to a relegation scrap than a European push.  

Structurally, the crew continues to be a piece in progress. As , 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 exhibits.  

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

Commercial

Who’s Getting Their Passport Stamped? 

It’s a brutal, stunning mess. Six groups, two (perhaps 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 may very well be the distinction between a European journey and a summer season 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 route in a manner they hadn’t in years. Actual Sociedad has the expertise, and even their baseline stage could be larger than that of the opposite opponents. 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 a number of momentum in 2025. Rayo appear like a extra steady collective, but when Mumin’s damage continues to punish them so severely, Vallecas turns into a tighter spot for the house facet. Whatever the final result, this struggle for the final European spots is without doubt one of the large nailbiters in the direction of the tip of the season.