Barcelona will celebrate their 22nd
Spanish league title on Wednesday if Real
Madrid fail to beat Malaga at home.
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The Real-Malaga fixture was originally
scheduled for May 19 but has been brought forward
to Wednesday because Real will face neighbours
Atletico in the Spanish cup final on May 17.
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Real are currently 11 points behind Barca with four
games left. Therefore, should they fail to beat Malaga
- who last season battled out a 1-1 draw in the
Estadio Bernabeu - then Barca will be celebrate the
title without kicking a ball in anger.
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That would be particularly sweet for Barca coach Tito
Vilanova, who is back in New York this week to
continue with his treatment for throat cancer.
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A celebration is just what Barca need after that
painful 7-0 aggregate meltdown against Bayern
Munich in the semifinals of the Champions League, a
humiliation which confirmed that the Catalans need
a profound renovation this summer.
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Little playmaker Andres Iniesta said: "They (the
defeats against Bayern) really hurt us, and the fans
as well. It was really painful.
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"Now we need to make a few changes. However, we
should not assume that everything is wrong at the
club, because this week we could become league
champions. So obviously we have done something
right this season."
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When asked about the feud at Real between coach
Jose Mourinho and Spain goalkeeper Iker Casillas,
who has been consigned to the subs' bench, Iniesta
was as under-stated and diplomatic as ever.
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"From a distance this situation is difficult to
understand, given what Iker has always represented.
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It is strange that he is not playing. What is also
strange is all the things we are hearing. It is a
difficult situation.
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"Diego Lopez (who has replaced Casillas in the Real
goal) is playing very well and he is a great keeper,
but I am not referring to the sporting situation but to
the extra-sporting things that we are hearing from
Madrid."
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Mourinho has made himself extremely unpopular not
only by dropping Casillas but also by criticizing
Spain's captain in public.
Barcelona will definately win the La Liga anytime from now. Their players have done very well at the beginning of the season.