Five things we’ve learned from the first half of the LALIGA EA SPORTS season

The final LALIGA EA SPORTS fixtures of 2024 have taken place, with Spanish football’s top division now entering into a brief pause before the competition resumes in January. At this break in the season, let’s take a look at five of the main storylines from the first few months of the campaign. 

Atlético de Madrid are serious title contenders

Sitting top of the table at the end of 2024 are Atlético de Madrid, who pulled off a spectacular late 2-1 victory away at FC Barcelona in their final game of the year. That was their 12th win in a row in all competitions and their seventh consecutive victory in LALIGA EA SPORTS. It puts them on 41 points after 18 games played, and if they keep up this pace then they’d collect 87 points by the end of the season. When they last won the championship, in 2020/21, they finished with 86 points, so it’s a similar kind of season. While Real Madrid and FC Barcelona are both lurking just behind, Atleti have shown over the first half of the campaign that they’re very much in this title race. 

Robert Lewandowski’s closest challenger for a second Pichichi is a teammate 

Although FC Barcelona’s form has fallen off in recent weeks, they are still the top scorers in the division by a large margin. They’ve netted 51 goals, while the next-closest team in the goals for category is Real Madrid, with 41. Robert Lewandowski has scored 16 of Los Blaugranas’ goals so far, and holds a commanding lead in the race to win the Pichichi Trophy, the prize given out each season to the competition’s top scorer. His next closest challenger is actually one of his teammates, as second place in the scoring charts is currently held by Raphinha, who is having an outstanding season and who has scored 11 league goals already. 

Valencia CF could drop to LALIGA HYPERMOTION for the first time since 1987

At the bottom of the table, Valencia CF are in big trouble. Not since 1987 have Los Che played outside Spanish football’s top tier, but relegation is a serious threat in 2024/25. They have only played 17 games, one fewer than most of their rivals, but they’re currently joint-bottom alongside Real Valladolid, level with Los Blanquivioletas on just 12 points. They’re only four points from safety, as 17th-placed Getafe CF have 16 points, but it is a concerning situation for one of Spanish football’s most historic clubs. 

Kylian Mbappé is starting to settle in at Real Madrid 

The biggest transfer of the summer was, without a doubt, Kylian Mbappé, and the Frenchman has had an up and down first few months at Real Madrid. He scored on his debut, when Real Madrid won the UEFA Super Cup, but netted just one non-penalty goal across his first six LALIGA EA SPORTS games. However, the Frenchman has started to settle in to Carlo Ancelotti’s system and finished 2024 by scoring four goals across his past five LALIGA EA SPORTS appearances, including a spectacular long-range strike against Sevilla FC in his final game of the year.

Athletic Club continue to improve under Valverde 

The 2023/24 campaign was a memorable one for Athletic Club, as they won the Copa del Rey for the first time in 40 years and as they qualified for Europe again for the first time in seven seasons. Los Leones have picked up where they left off and, under the coaching of Ernesto Valverde, they’re on track for another memorable season. The team from Bilbao are currently fourth and hold a six-point lead over fifth place, so returning to the Champions League for the first time since 2014/15 really is a possibility. They also sit second in the Europa League group phase, so it has been a successful season so far for the Basques in almost every sense.