La Liga Player Rankings After Gameweek 37, May 17
With one week to go, the league title is decided: Barcelona have won La Liga after their 1-0 victory at Atletico Madrid.
Elsewhere there were big performances for Sevilla, Real Madrid and for Celta Vigo against Valencia, which all affected our player rankings in the penultimate weekend of top-flight Spanish football.
Here are the updated standings, taking into account performances in Sunday's matches, ahead of the final week of games.
Mentions
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Michael Krohn-Dehli of Celta Vigo slips out of our 20 after not impacting enough on the game against Valencia this week, which means one new entrant from our regular mentions from last week.
Still hoping for a big performance and inclusion on the last day of the season:
Jan Oblak, Atletico Madrid
Xabier Etxeita, Athletic Bilbao
Javi Fuego, Valencia
Vicente Iborra, Sevilla
Ivan Rakitic, Barcelona
20. Javier Mascherano, FCB
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New entrant!
Javier Mascherano finally makes a welcome return to the top 20, with his recent displays immense both at the heart of the Barcelona defence and when he anchors the midfield in Sergio Busquets' absence.
The Argentine was extremely strong against Atletico Madrid, helping keep the clean sheet against counter-attacks and set pieces from the home side.
He has been a massive part of Barcelona's team this season and will continue to be so as they chase the treble.
19. Nolito, CEL
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Change: +1
Nolito came back into the Celta Vigo team and put in a good performance against Valencia, again highlighting the potential of this team to challenge much higher up the table next year.
The left-sided forward caused all sorts of problems in the first half with his runs off the flank, clever crosses or threaded passes and a long-range shot of his own.
A 1-1 scoreline was a deserved point for Celta, and they can still finish in the top half.
18. Sofiane Feghouli, VAL
4 of 21
Change: +2
At the opposite end of the pitch to Nolito, Sofiane Feghouli had a good impact for Valencia, as they gradually wrested control of the game from Celta, drew level and sought to take all three points late on.
The Algerian showed all the power and good use of space, which is synonymous with his good performances of the season, while also helping craft several good-quality chances inside the penalty box, running in off the right.
Once again he dropped deeper into midfield later on in the game and was a threat throughout with his probing passes.
17. James Rodriguez, RMA
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No change
Our 17-to-12 area of last week's rankings were dominated by Real Madrid, and not many of those players move this time around.
It was a comfortable win in the end, 4-1 over Espanyol, but not enough to stop Barcelona winning the title—and as a result, several of the players put in similar displays: controlled and convincing, without being an absolute standout.
James Rodriguez was heavily involved in Real's buildup, created one of the goals and looked a danger in the final third—a good game all-round.
16. Karim Benzema, RMA
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Change: -1
Karim Benzema returned to the starting lineup in La Liga at last, playing an hour before going off with an apparent injury.
He didn't really see too many chances fall his way in the penalty area, though he was his usual good self in linking play around the edge of the box, working hard to create space, and he also claimed an assist.
15. Marcelo, RMA
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Change: +1
One of the most important players for Real in their 4-1 win over Espanyol, Marcelo consistently raided forward from left-back to make use of space both infield and down the flank, though he certainly sought to keep the width as often as possible this time.
He scored a tremendous goal with a fizzing shot after a typical run from deep and played a number of impressive balls from deep to change the tempo of the game at times.
Like most of the defence, he was booked, but he played well.
14. Isco, RMA
8 of 21
No change
Isco was a little like James in that he saw a lot of the ball in the middle areas of the pitch, distributed it well and linked the midfield to the attack, though he wasn't as decisive further forward this time around.
It's worth noting that he worked hard off the ball and covered to try and win back possession quickly for his team, contributing to his overall performance. Isco was subbed after around 70 minutes.
13. Tiago, ATM
9 of 21
Change: -2
Tiago was suspended for Atletico Madrid and missed the game against Barcelona.
12. Dani Parejo, VAL
10 of 21
Change: +1
Another decent outing for Dani Parejo, who is seeking to take Valencia over the line and into the Champions League on the final day.
At times in the first half, he was overrun in the middle, not really helped by a static Andre Gomes who was subbed early on, injured, but Parejo and his team recovered to put in a good performance and take the draw.
He wasn't at his creative best all game long, but drove his team forward, kept possession well and helped made sure they took something positive from the game.
11. Toni Kroos, RMA
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Change: +1
Toni Kroos was comfortable throughout for Real Madrid, dictating play from the base of midfield against Espanyol, and he allowed others ahead of him to set up the devastatingly fast attacks from which the goals came from.
He certainly saw plenty of the ball and was also strong in the challenge, when Espanyol threatened to break forward, mopping up behind the offensive midfielders and redistributing play to instigate further attacks.
10. Diego Godin, ATM
12 of 21
No change
Diego Godin featured at the heart of Atletico Madrid's defence in their defeat to Barcelona, but despite staying organised and strong for much of the game, he couldn't ultimately prevent the single-goal loss.
Godin, as you might expect, made a large number of interceptions and challenges inside and just on the edge of his penalty area, as Barcelona tried to play their way through, but was also involved in a few off-ball moments of aggression, particularly with Neymar.
Last year he scored the title-sealing goal, but he couldn't avoid defeat this time.
9. Koke, ATM
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Change: -1
In the same game, Atletico's forward-thinking players had little chance to get involved as a result of Barcelona's absolute dominance of the ball and territory.
Koke had to get through an enormous amount of work in midfield for little reward in terms of getting on the ball, though his set-piece delivery was pretty good as usual.
Simply a game he had to get through without as much involvement as he'd have liked.
8. Antoine Griezmann, ATM
14 of 21
Change: -1
If Koke was not as involved as much as normal, Antoine Griezmann barely featured.
The French forward escaped to get a couple of shots away momentarily, but by and large, he was kept both outside of the penalty area and away from clear shooting chances. He needed to be more of a direct threat on the counter than penalty-box predator this time, and Atleti didn't have enough of the ball for him to do that.
7. Gerard Pique, FCB
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Change: +2
Gerard Pique's monstrous end-of-season form sees him make a charge into the top end of our rankings.
The central defender was imperious at the back again alongside Javier Mascherano, battling away against Fernando Torres and later Mario Mandzukic to deny both any real chances in the area.
His passing was good, his timing excellent and his concentration complete. A great centre-back partnership to take the title.
6. Neymar, FCB
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No change
Neymar stays in sixth after a game where he had lots of the ball but couldn't do huge amounts with it due to the Atleti defence being compact, organised and tremendously difficult to breach.
His running and pulling wide tried to open the game for Barça, while he also fed the likes of Leo Messi for a few shots on goal, but he never really came too close to scoring himself—blazing the best chance well over the bar when he should have hit the target.
A team display, not a personal one, for Neymar.
5. Diego Alves, VAL
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No change
Diego Alves stays in our top five after Valencia's 1-1 draw against Celta Vigo.
The Brazilian was beaten early on after a corner routine from Celta, but made a couple of important saves thereafter to keep Los Che in the game.
Not a fixture he was overly tested in aerially, given the opposition's propensity to play along the ground and build up outside the box rather than cross, but he distributed well and was as consistent as ever.
4. Luis Suarez, FCB
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Change: -1
Luis Suarez rested a minor muscle strain and didn't play for Barcelona against Atletico Madrid.
3. Cristiano Ronaldo, RMA
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Change: +1
Real Madrid won 4-1 and it still wasn't enough to stop Barcelona from taking the title, but Cristiano Ronaldo netted a hat-trick to ensure he should finish as La Liga's top scorer this season.
A variety of strikes all showed certain traits in common: great willingness and desire, unerring consistency in front of goal and the physical aggression to beat his man to the ball—both in the air and over ground.
Ronaldo is now the proud owner of 45 Liga goals in 34 matches—or one every 68 minutes.
2. Nicolas Otamendi, VAL
20 of 21
No change
Nicolas Otamendi was once again Valencia's rock at the back against Celta Vigo, but vitally he was also their man on the spot at the other end of the pitch too.
The Argentinian defender ran in and stabbed home the equalising goal for Los Che, showing all the determination and anticipation which he usually displays at the opposite end to rescue a vital point in the 1-1 draw.
One more game to go and Valencia can celebrate Champions League football next season with a win.
1. Lionel Messi, FCB
21 of 21
No change
It had to be Messi.
Atletico's defensive record is excellent, the team organised and hard to break through at home—yet Messi's technique, touch and ability to work tight spaces made the difference.
The No. 10 player scored the only goal of the game to wrap up the league title and celebrated with appropriate emotion. One down, two to go as Barcelona chase a treble, and with Messi in top form, they have every chance of doing so.
