Kylian Mbappé ended his first full La Liga season as the league’s top scorer with 25 goals, and Real Madrid gave their supporters a winning send-off at the Bernabéu on the final matchday. The result confirmed Madrid’s second-place finish on 86 points, eight clear of Villarreal in third. Barcelona, who finished on 94 points, claimed the title regardless of what happened here. For Athletic Club, a 12th-place finish with 45 points tells the story of a difficult season that rarely threatened the top half.
What’s at stake
With Barcelona already crowned champions and Champions League qualification locked in for the top four, the final day carried less mathematical tension than positional pride. Real Madrid entered matchday 38 on 83 points and needed a win to consolidate second place ahead of the closing standings. Villarreal sat third on 72 points, meaning Madrid’s runner-up spot was not in any real jeopardy. The afternoon was about finishing cleanly at home rather than chasing anything.
For Athletic Club, the stakes were similarly low in terms of standing. Sitting 12th on 45 points with the relegation zone well below them, Ernesto Valverde’s side travelled to the Bernabéu without anything concrete to play for. The visitors had endured a rough run of form in the final weeks of the season, and a result here would have done little to change their overall picture. Madrid, however, delivered a convincing performance that made the occasion feel more significant than the table suggested.
How they got here
Real Madrid went into this fixture in good shape. Their last five league results read W-W-W-L-W, with the only blemish a 2-0 defeat at Barcelona on May 10. They followed that up by winning at Sevilla 1-0 and beating Oviedo 2-0 at home before closing with this 4-2 result. Alvaro Arbeloa’s side scored 77 league goals across the season while conceding just 35, numbers that put them comfortably ahead of every team outside the top two. Athletic Club’s form over the same period was shakier: L-D-L-L-W, with defeats to Espanyol, Valencia and now Madrid sandwiching a draw with Celta Vigo.
Madrid finished on 86 points from 38 matches, 27 wins, five draws and six losses. Athletic Club ended on 45 points, 13 wins, six draws and 19 defeats. The gap between the two clubs this season has been considerable, and the head-to-head record reflected that. In the last 10 meetings between the sides, Madrid have won seven, Athletic Club two, with one draw.
Key battle to watch
The most interesting tactical question coming in was how Athletic Club’s 4-2-3-1 midfield block, anchored by Ruiz de Galarreta and Mikel Jauregizar, would handle the movement of Jude Bellingham and Federico Valverde in Madrid’s 4-4-2. Bellingham’s tendency to arrive late into the box makes him difficult to track for a double pivot, and Valverde’s engine means Athletic rarely get a rest when Madrid are in possession. With Nico Williams and Inaki Williams operating as wide threats for the visitors, there was at least a counter-attacking dimension that kept Madrid’s backline honest, though Arbeloa’s side handled it well enough over 90 minutes.
Key Stats
Match Context
Standings
Head To Head
Our Prediction
Real Madrid came in as heavy favorites and delivered accordingly, with Mbappé’s 25-goal season giving Madrid a reliable attacking outlet throughout. Athletic Club’s form over the final stretch of the season gave little reason to expect anything other than a home win, and the 4-2 scoreline reflected the gap between the two sides. Second place is the right summary of Madrid’s 2025-26 season: clearly better than everyone except Barcelona, but never quite able to close a gap that reached eight points at the final whistle.