Real Madrid could wrap up La Liga this coming Thursday should they defeat Villarreal at the Santiago Bernabeu.
With Barcelona suffering from issues both on and off the pitch this campaign, Madrid have, for once, went about their business quietly to lead the table for the majority of the season.
Now, with two matches remaining against Villarreal and then Leganes, they have the opportunity to win their first title since the 2016/17 season, with Barca having won the past two.
They are currently four points ahead of the Blaugrana, who need to win against Osasuna and Alaves and hope that Real Madrid slip up.
AS IT STANDS
Real Madrid FORM
Since La Liga recommenced in the middle of June, Real Madrid have been, well, perfect.
Well, in terms of results they have at least, as they have won every single one of their last nine stretching back to the 3-2 victory versus Eibar.
Their best performance of the run came in the game after Eibar as they defeated Valencia 3-0 at home to earn a FC Rating of 9.0, with a goal from Marco Asensio and two from Karim Benzema, including potentially the goal of the season, putting Los Che down.
Since then, things have got a bit scrappy with no less than five wins in the nine-match run being won my a margin of just one goal, while they put together a run of three 1-0 wins in a row versus Espanyol, Getafe, and Athletic Bilbao, with the latter two coming via controversially awarded penalties scored by Sergio Ramos.
In terms of winning, they are a machine, and need just one more.
Unfortunately for the Yellow Submarine, they have simply ran out of matches to qualify for the Champions League, with the top four of Madrid, Barca, and Sevilla already confirmed.
However, at fifth place in the table they'll still be looking behind them, with both Getafe and Real Sociedad within three points.
In recent matches, consistency has been an issue as they have won three and lost two out of the last five, with the two losses coming against Barcelona and, perhaps crucially, Sociedad this past weekend.
One thing is probably for certain, we are going to be entertained by this one. The last two games between Real Madrid and Villarreal and have ended 2-2 and 3-2 (to Madrid) respectively, while in the past five matches we have seen no less than 18 goals scored.
PLAYER TO WATCH
Benzema has been a joy to watch this campaign, revelling in the increased pressure of being the club's current most important attacker.
While other players such as Eden Hazard, Vinicius Junior, and Rodrygo have been in and out of the team, he has been a model of consistency, putting in influential performances on the regular.
If he is in the mood, Villarreal will have a tough time keeping him quiet, like they were unable to do against the Barca frontline in the heavy 4-1 loss a couple of weeks ago.
Barcelona 
Villarreal 
