Atletico Madrid and Villarreal wrapped up their 2024/25 La Liga seasons with dominant wins with UEFA Champions League qualification sealed.
Los Rojiblancos once again finished third in the final rankings, in behind champions Barcelona and Real Madrid, as the latter signed off with a 2-0 home win over Real Sociedad.
With La Liga granted five spots in the UCL for 2025/26, Villarreal eased into fifth, to return to Europe’s top tier next season.
Let’s take a look at how the campaign finale unfolded…
Diego Simeone’s side landed in Girona with little left to play for – and the hosts already safe from relegation – as Leganes slipped down this weekend.
A strange contest in Catalonia was effectively squeezed into the final 25 minutes as the visitors scored four times after the 75-minute mark.
Alexander Sorloth netted a hat trick, to bring the Norwegian international up to 20 league goals in his debut campaign at the club, with his final goal laid on by overall top scorer Julian Alvarez.
Julian Alvarez dándole el hat trick a Sorloth ❤️
— rubén (@rubennatm) May 25, 2025
It’s the second year in a row where Sorloth has netted 20 league goals after bagging 23 in his sole campaign at Villarreal in 2024/25.
The Yellow Submarine are back in Europe’s biggest competition as they survived a battle of wills with Real Betis in recent weeks.
Real Betis now join Celta Vigo in the 205/26 Europa League with Rayo Vallecano snatching the vacated Conference League place.
Marcelino’s team had the edge throughout a wild 4-2 win over Sevilla on the final day but they were forced to fight over the line.
Two goals either side of the break from Pape Gueye proved to the decisive factor for Villarreal in Castellon as they now plan for the coming months with the boost of Champions League money.
Images via Getty Images/One Football
