La Liga has a new leader heading into the new week after Real Madrid beat Real Sociedad by a 1-2 final score on Sunday night, taking advantage of a Barcelona slip-up earlier during the weekend at Sevilla.
Barcelona, which went into the weekend with a two-point advantage in the standings over Real Madrid, faced possibly its most difficult match in what remains of the season on Friday night as they traveled to a strong Sevilla side.
Despite dominating early, the Blaugrana were unable to find the net and finished the game with only a point in hand after a 0-0 deadlock.
Real Madrid knew that if they beat Real Sociedad on Sunday night, they would move into first place in the standings thanks to their stronger head-to-head record against FC Barcelona this season. They took advantage of the opportunity to move into first place, winning a tight 1-2 match in the Basque Country.
The game was not without controversy, as a debatable penalty gave Los Blancos a 0-1 lead in the second half much to Real Sociedad’s dismay. A possible handball wasn’t called on Karim Benzema either just before he knocked the ball into the net to put his team up 0-2.
While Mikel Merino did pull a goal back for Real Sociedad before the final whistle, they were unable to find an equalizer and Real Madrid left to go back home to the capital with 3 points and their new status as the La Liga leaders.
With 8 matches left to go in the season, it’s still anyone’s guess who will take home the title, but Real Madrid’s confidence and its momentum seems to have hit a new high following the weekend.
