Barcelona are champions of Spain once again. Their victory in Sunday’s Clasico officially sealed a 29th La Liga title and confirmed the dominance of a side that has set the standard throughout the season under Hansi Flick.

The title had felt inevitable for weeks, but beating Real Madrid provided the perfect stage for Barcelona to complete the job.

It marks another major success in Flick’s remarkable start in Catalonia, with the German already adding a Copa del Rey, two Spanish Super Cups and now back-to-back league titles since arriving in 2024.

Barcelona’s triumph has been built on consistency. Despite injuries to several key players during decisive moments of the campaign, the Blaugrana spent 23 of the 35 matchdays at the top of the table, including 21 of the last 22.

Flick transforms early doubts into dominance

The season did not begin without turbulence. Early setbacks against Rayo Vallecano, Sevilla and Real Madrid briefly raised concerns, especially after Los Blancos opened up a five-point advantage early in the campaign.

Narrow wins over sides such as Levante, Real Sociedad and Girona also exposed imperfections in the team’s performances.

Yet Flick remained calm throughout. His confidence proved justified. From the first Clasico defeat onwards, Barcelona won 23 of their next 25 league matches, establishing themselves as the strongest and most reliable side in the division.

The Catalans can now still target the 100-point mark for only the second time in club history if they win their remaining fixtures.

Lamine Yamal becomes the face of a new era

While previous seasons revolved around Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha, this campaign firmly belonged to Lamine Yamal.

Although injured for the title-clinching Clasico, the teenager was central to Barcelona’s success. Wearing the iconic number 10 shirt, Yamal produced a stunning campaign, registering 16 goals and 11 assists while emerging as one of world football’s brightest stars.

At just 18 years old, he has already collected a third league title and now looks set to become the cornerstone of Barcelona’s future.

A project built to last

The championship further strengthens Flick’s standing at the club. The German has maintained a flawless domestic record in Spain, continuing the winning mentality that previously defined his spell at Bayern Munich.

His aggressive, attack-minded philosophy has transformed Barcelona into the league’s most entertaining and effective side. While questions remain over the team’s defensive resilience in Europe, their firepower proved overwhelming in La Liga.

Club president Joan Laporta is already working on extending the coach’s contract beyond 2027, with Barcelona eager to secure long-term stability around a project that appears built for sustained success.

Closing in on history

This latest triumph brings Barcelona to 29 league titles, just one short of the symbolic 30-title mark previously reached only by Real Madrid.

The contrast with the club’s earlier history is striking. Before 1990, Barcelona had won only 10 league championships since La Liga’s creation in 1928. Since then, they have added 19 more, dramatically reducing Madrid’s historical advantage and cementing themselves as one of the dominant forces of the modern era.

besoccer.com

Ahead of Sunday’s pivotal El Clasico match against Real Madrid, FC Barcelona coach Hansi Flick has experienced a personal sorrow following the passing of his father.

Barcelona sent its sympathies to the German tactician and his family in a statement on Sunday.

“Barcelona and the entire Blaugrana family wish to convey our affection to Hansi Flick over the passing of his father. We share his pain and stand with him during this very difficult time for him and his family,” the club stated.

As Barcelona gets closer to winning La Liga again, Flick is getting his team ready for one of the biggest games of the season despite the emotional setback.

With four games remaining, the Catalan powerhouses presently lead Real Madrid by 11 points.

To formally win the league title, a victory in Sunday’s Clasico at Camp Nou would be sufficient.

Flick is about to lead Barcelona to back-to-back La Liga victories after taking over the team last season.

Despite a race against time to regain fitness, Kylian Mbappe has been omitted from Alvaro Arbeloa’s squad for Sunday’s showdown between Barcelona and Real Madrid. Federico Valverde also misses out following a training ground collision with Aurelien Tchouameni.

Real Madrid announced their squad list on Sunday for ‘El Clasico’ against Barcelona at the Camp Nou, with Kylian Mbappe the notable absentee. The striker has not recovered in time for the crucial trip to the Camp Nou.

Kylian Mbappe returned to Madrid last Sunday at the centre of a storm, following a controversial trip to Italythat had been supervised and approved by Real Madrid’s medical staff, but which was viewed from the outside as inappropriate. His aim on returning was to be fit for the ‘Clásico’, two weeks after it was announced that he had suffered an injury to the semitendinosus muscle in his left leg.

On Saturday, the Frenchman was only able to take part in part of the training session with his teammates, which was already a bad sign. On Sunday, the latest medical assessment strongly advised against him playing in the match, so the coaching staff decided to leave him out of a squad that is already missing as many as eight players. In addition to Mbappe, Valverde – due to the injury sustained in the clash with Tchouameni – Carvajal, Militao, Mendy, Arda Guler, Ceballos and Rodrygo are also absent.

On the other hand, Arbeloa has included Tchouameni in the squad, as the club settled the matter with a fine and did not impose any sporting suspension, and Thibaut Courtois returns to the squad. The Belgian has now recovered from his latest injury, which had kept him out of action since 17 March when he was injured against Manchester City, and he is likely to be Real Madrid’s starting goalkeeper in the ‘Clásico’.

Real Madrid squad to face Barcelona:

Goalkeepers: Thibaut Courtois, Lunin and Sergio Mestre.

Defenders: Alaba, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Raul Asencio, Alvaro Carreras, Fran Garcia, Rudiger, Dean Huijsen and David Jimenez.

Midfielders: Bellingham, Camavinga, Tchouameni, Thiago, Cestero and Palacios.

Forwards: Vini Jr., Gonzalo, Brahim and Mastantuono.

besoccer.com