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Spanish football returns tonight when Girona take on Real Valladolid in the curtain raiser of the La Liga season. All 20 teams will play over the next four days and there is plenty of thrilling football action to look forward to over the coming months.
For the second straight summer, the Spanish top flight has lost one of its superstars. Last summer, Neymar shocked the world when departing Barcelona to take up residence in Paris. The world record transfer didn't affect La Blaugrana, however, as they went on to collect their third league title in four years.
This summer, it was Real Madrid's turn to lose a star player. Cristiano Ronaldo's move to Juventus came somewhat out of the blue even though the player had voiced his doubts about remaining at Los Blancos after lifting a third consecutive Champions League title in May.
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The departure of the Portuguese superstar leaves a huge void in La Liga and ends one of the greatest player rivalries in sport. However, it also presents an opportunity for new stars to emerge and represents something of a new dawn for Spanish domestic football.
With this season looking as unpredictable as ever, we take a look at five reasons to get excited about the new La Liga campaign.
#5 The Race For Europe
With all probability, the two Madrid teams and Barcelona will fill the top three positions in the league this year. However, Valencia may have something to say about that having finished only four points behind Real Madrid last year and completing some excellent transfers over the summer.
Los Che is hot favourites to take the fourth Champions League qualification spot again this season and will hope to even gatecrash the party at the peak of the table. It would be hugely surprising if the top four didn't feature the same teams as last season, but there are some interesting challengers who could shake things up.
Real Betis and Sevilla both start the season looking very strong. Betis suffered greatly from their poor defense last season and have spent the summer acquiring defensive-minded players to improve on the massive 61 goals conceded last time out.
Similarly, Sevilla had defensive issues throughout the last campaign, conceding 58 times. However, with their new manager, Pablo Machín, and some astute defensive signings, Los Hispalenses will start the season with belief that an assault on the top four is a realistic target.
With fifth and sixth the only positions guaranteed to qualify for the Europe League, it seems likely that these six teams will occupy the European places come May. However, one of Villareal or Real Sociedad may have the ability to intrude on the European qualification party if they can maintain consistency throughout the season.
Next Up, #4 The Romance of Huesca's Rise.
#4 The Romance of Huesca's Rise
Playing in Barcelona colours, the rise of Huesca is an incredible and romantic story. The tiny club from Aragon was only promoted to the Segunda Division in 2015 and earned a second promotion in three years last season after finishing as runners-up to Rayo Vallecano.
The historic result means Huesca will now compete against elite competition in the Spanish top flight for the first time in their history. Playing their home games in a compact, 5,500 capacity Estadio El Alcoraz could prove key to any hope of survival for the club.
They have acquired well during the summer, bringing in a large number of players on loan. The likes of Ruben Samedo (loan from Villareal), Alex Werner (loan from Athletico Madrid), Pablo Insua (loan from Schalke 04), and Samuel Longo (loan from Inter Milan) will all prove essential in helping the club fight against relegation.
Nobody expects a miracle from this obscure addition to La Liga and the reality is they may become whipping boys for the bigger teams in the division. However, bringing Messi, Griezman, Bale, and others to a tiny stadium in the middle of a forest will ensure essential viewing.
Who knows? Maybe they will even spring a surprise or two and create memories which will last a lifetime for their fans.
Next Up, #3 The Debut of VAR.
#3 The Debut of VAR
Having caused controversy, confusion, and some outrage during this summer's World Cup, Video Assistant Referee (VAR) will debut in La Liga this season. Whether you agree with the use of the technology or not, it is certain that the decision to use VAR for Spanish top-flight games will generate headlines over the coming months.
The use of VAR was implemented for the first time in a competitive Spanish fixture last weekend when Barcelona beat Sevilla to left the Spanish Supercopa de Espana. It will make it La Liga debut on Friday night as Girona take on Real Valladolid at the Estadi Montilivi.
With the Premier League rejecting the opportunity to implement VAR, it represents a big step for La Liga to use the technology this season. According to the Spanish Football Federation's official website, the referees have undergone rigorous training to prepare for VAR.
The website states that the federation has looked into the errors and issues which arose from the use of the technology during the World Cup and hope to learn from them while focuses on the successes of the new technology.
A major problem with VAR is the lack of communication for fans inside the stadium who generally have no idea what is happening when the referee is consulting the VAR team. It also disrupts the flow of the game as players cannot properly celebrate a goal until it has been confirmed by the officials.
The use of VAR makes it highly likely that we will see more penalties, red cards, and major decisions throughout the coming season. It will certainly add an extra element of excitement to the competition and could play a key role in some of the major fixtures during the campaign.
Next Up, #2 An Unpredictable Title Race.
#2 An Unpredictable Title Race
All three of the top Spanish teams enter this season as champions. Barcelona as La Liga champions, Real Madrid as Champions League winners, and Athletico Madrid as Europa League winners.
While Barcelona begins the season as favourites to retain the league title, it would come as no shock if either Madrid team sat at the peak of La Liga come May. Each club should rightly have aspirations to lift the championship this season and there are many intriguing subplots to the title race.
The departure of Cristiano Ronaldo and Zinedine Zidane were huge blows for Real Madrid. However, it also represents an opportunity for Los Blancos. Ronaldo's transfer to Juventus removes the talisman from Real but also creates the chance to play as more of a team for the coming season.
While everything went through Ronaldo last season, this year play could be spread around the midfield and forward lines more evenly and benefit the style of play. Appointing Julen Lopetegui as manager could also play in the hands of Madrid as he will bring hunger and desire to a squad which may have otherwise lacked motivation.
Athletico Madrid also has reasons to be optimistic coming into the season. A superb Super Cup victory over their city rivals will instill belief throughout the squad and some canny transfer business has significantly strengthened the team.
The major signing of Thomas Lemar could prove essential for an assault on the title by Athletico. The 22-year-old will slot nicely into Simeone's preferred formations and his versatility across the attacking lines will allow the Argentinian manager to use him in multiple positions if necessary.
Of course, Barcelona remains the team to beat and it will be fascinating to see if either Madrid team can challenge Messi and company for the league title.
Next Up, #1 La Liga's Revolutionary Partnerships.
#1 La Liga's Revolutionary Partnerships
La Liga made two huge announcements over the past week. The first related to their partnership with Facebook to stream all 380 La Liga matches live on the social media platform for three seasons across the Indian sub-continent.
This move is ground-breaking for La Liga and football in general. Should the partnership with Facebook prove successful, we can expect to see similar deals being rolled out for other major European leagues and in other areas of the world.
The second major announcement came yesterday when word of a 15-year deal to play competitive league games in the United States was released. The arrangement doesn't state how many games per season will be played in America or when the first game will happen, but we are likely to see it occur during the next television deal cycle which runs from 2019 to 2022.
This deal makes La Liga the first major European league to agree to play competitive games outside of the country. It does, however, follow a trend that is being set by leagues such as Serie A which play the Supercopa Italiana outside of Italy.
These revolutionary announcements could change how we consume football in the future and bring competitive games to fans who otherwise would never have the chance to see their team play live.
For now, residents in the Indian sub-continent are the major benefactors and can enjoy every single La Liga game free and live on Facebook.
