Barcelona aim to seal league title away to Levante
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FC Barcelona will be crowned as the champions of the Primera Liga if they are able to draw away to mid-table Levante in Spain's matchday 36 this Wednesday night.
Barcelona's win at home to Espanyol means they need just a solitary point to assure their third title in three years and coach Pep Guardiola has already made it clear that he will play his strongest side in order to assure the title as soon as possible to both avoid possible nerves and also to allow longer time to prepare for the Champions League final at the end of the month.
As a result, Barca will play their strongest 11 with the only doubt being whether Eric Abidal completes his amazing recovery from having a tumor removed from his liver in March, by returning to the starting 11.
The round of games kicks off on Saturday with Deportivo la Coruna fighting for their Primera Liga future at home to fifth placed Athletic Club Bilbao.
Deportivo slipped into the bottom three at the weekend despite a 2-2 draw away to Sporting Gijon and with games against Barcelona and Valencia still to come, Deportivo have no option other than to win against a side aiming to qualify for Europe.
Athletic will be without the suspended Gaizka Toquero, while Iker Muniain is an injury doubt.
Tuesday also sees Malaga entertain Sporting Gijon. Four wins from four games have dragged Malaga to the verge of safety and a draw might be enough to ensure the safety of both sides in the Primera Liga.
Likewise Racing Santander need a point at home to Atletico Madrid to assure their future. Atletico meanwhile need to recover from their 3-0 home defeat to Malaga and coach Quique Sanchez Flores could bring Diego Forlan into the side to replace the suspended Diego Costa.
Tuesday also sees a Madrid derby as Getafe visit the Santiago Bernabeu stadium. Getafe need points as they could drop into the bottom three with a defeat, but injury and suspension has left coach Michel Gonzalez with just the bare bones of his squad.
The remaining games are on Wednesday: apart from Barcelona' s game away to Levante, there is plenty to play for.
Real Sociedad and Zaragoza play a tense battle to avoid relegation, with both sides desperate for a win, while Hercules could be mathematically relegated should they fail to win at home to Mallorca.
Osasuna entertain Sevilla in a game with both survival and Europe at stake, although Sevilla may find their ambitions complicated by injuries to key players such as Martin Caceres, Ivan Rakitic and Jesus Navas.
A win for Villarreal away to already relegated Almeria will assure their place in next season's Champions League, while Espanyol have their last chance to keep in the fight for a place in Europe as they entertain Valencia, who in turn are looking to assure they finish third to qualify directly for the group stage of the Champions League.
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