Tough tests for the title challengers as Betis face Barca and Girona host Madrid

The LaLiga title race is well and truly heating up, with FC Barcelona and Real Madrid battling over first place, while Atlético de Madrid lurk just behind. Every point is valuable, yet the top two teams have difficult fixtures in matchday 16 as Barca travel to Seville to take on Real Betis, while Real Madrid play away at Girona FC.

Before those two blockbuster clashes, the first game of the weekend will take place in Vigo on Friday night. There, RC Celta and RCD Mallorca will lock horns, with the island team looking to bounce back from their Tuesday night defeat at home to FC Barcelona. A late goal from Vedat Muriqi earned Los Bermellones a 1-0 win away at RC Celta last season, and they’d love a repeat result on this visit.

The first of Saturday’s fixtures is a clash between the first two LaLiga clubs to sack their manager this season, UD Las Palmas and Real Valladolid. For the Canary Islanders, the hiring of Diego Martínez is already working to perfection. Now, Real Valladolid will hope to achieve a similar revival after moving on from Paulo Pezzolano.

In the afternoon, there is a hugely important match as Real Betis and FC Barcelona meet at the Estadio Benito Villamarín. Although Barça won 5-0 and 4-2 against Los Verdiblancos last season, it isn’t usually so easy against Manuel Pellegrini’s side and the Catalan outfit will have to be wary of their own Brazilian forward Vitor Roque, who is currently on loan at the Andalusian club.

Valencia CF v Rayo Vallecano is a meeting between one of the youngest squads in the competition and one of the oldest. Rubén Baraja’s youngsters are currently second-bottom in the standings, so Los Che will view this as a vital game in their quest for survival.

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The fixture on Saturday night is another with major implications for the title race, as Girona FC host Real Madrid. Although Los Blancos defeated the Catalan outfit twice last season, 3-0 and then 4-0, Girona FC do actually have a good record against Real Madrid. Across these teams’ eight total meetings in LaLiga, Girona FC have won three, drawn one and lost four. This Saturday, Míchel, the newly crowned November Coach of the Month, will hope to lead his side to another memorable night against Real Madrid.

Sunday’s action begins with a very Basque focus, as Real Sociedad play in the first game of the day, paying a visit to a CD Leganés side that is looking to remain outside the relegation zone. Next, Athletic Club are in action at home against Villarreal CF, a duel between the teams currently in fourth and fifth place. This, therefore, is a huge six-pointer in the race to qualify for the Champions League.

The other Basque team in LaLiga EA Sports, Deportivo Alavés, play in the day’s next game, when they make the short trip to take on CA Osasuna. This will be new coach Eduardo Coudet’s first LaLiga game in charge of Los Babazorros, following the club’s shock decision in midweek to part ways with Luis García Plaza.

The final game on Sunday is Atlético de Madrid v Sevilla FC, with Los Colchoneros looking to keep pace with FC Barcelona and Real Madrid at the top of the table. Since taking over as coach in 2011, Diego Simeone has never lost a home game in LaLiga against Sevilla FC, one of his former clubs, and he’ll hope to keep that run going.

The final fixture of the matchday also takes place in Madrid, as Getafe CF take on RCD Espanyol on Monday night. It’s a very significant game at the bottom, as these two teams enter this matchday level on 13 points, with Getafe CF currently just outside the drop zone and RCD Espanyol currently occupying the last of the three relegation spots. An intense battle should be expected as these two teams give their all to climb up the LaLiga standings.

© LaLiga