Five Games to Look Out For This Season in La Liga

It's too easy to fill this list of five games to look out for by just selecting the El Clasico, The Madrid Derby, all the games that are involving the top teams in La Liga but people outside Spain are going to learn much more by reading an article like this one which will look at the five games to look out for this season in La Liga and why along with the hatred and importance behind them all.

This is likely to be the most competitive and strongest La Liga in the last five years so brace yourself for what is going to be another incredible season in La Liga.

Real Madrid vs. Barcelona

The El Clasico is the biggest game in World football at club level but the game also has a political edge to it and has done ever since the Spanish Civil War ended in 1939.

Any Madridsta walking down to Camp Nou from Les Corts Metro station on the day of an El Clasico in a Real Madrid shirt is taken to one side by the police and walked to the away section for his/her own safety such is the hatred between these two.

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Barcelona is Spain by law and the only reason that Catalonia isn't independent from Spain is because the Spanish Courts and Government will always block any attempt.

Back to the football and Barcelona right now have the best front three in world football but for me the best front three to have ever played the game in Messi, Suarez and Neymar whilst Los Blancos remains a circus with Florentino Perez at the head of it.

This summer has seen Casillas depart, Cristiano make steps to leave the club, Uncertainty over Sergio Ramos's future and a new manager at the helm in Rafa Benitez.

This season's El Clasico just like last season begins at the Bernabeu and Benitez simply has to match what Ancelotti did in this exact fixture last season and that's win and this is likely to be a fixture in Week 12 as always that will have a big say in the title race come May.

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Athletic Bilbao vs. Real Madrid

If anyone based outside Spain asked me the best five La Liga games to go to for atmosphere and for the experience this one would be right up there in that five because this fixture is full of political hatred and always produces one of the best atmospheres in La Liga.

Just like with Barcelona and their Catalonian roots Bilbao are in the Basque Country and just like Catalans the Basque People want independence and to break away from Spain just as much as Catalans.

The ETA are still at large and their attacks in France this summer brought home the sadness of what they did in Spain around ten years ago and the ETA must be brought to justice one by one.

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Real Madrid always turn up to Bilbao and get a torrid time on the pitch and off it and last season was no different with Ronaldo and co getting it every time they took a throw-in or corner and when Aduriz's header flew in in the first half the noise was deafening inside San Mames.

San Mames will once again this season be a cauldron and noisy for this fixture and this is always a tough place to go for Real Madrid and if Benitez can come away from this fixture in Week 5 with a result then he'll be making steps towards delivering Los Blancos success this season.

Sevilla vs. Valencia

This fixture is going to be a key game in the race for that fourth spot just like it was last season and with both sides stronger than they were last season and both in the UEFA Champions League this fixture is going to be as interesting and as exciting as ever.

Valencia have added Phil Neville to the coaching staff at Mestalla and also kept the majority of last season's squad together and spent big money improving it too by spending over 150 million euros and signings like Santi Mina, Bakkali, Barbosa and with the likes of Gaya, Rodrigo De Paul still at the club Valencia are proving they have a strong squad and an exciting future to go with it.

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Sevilla once again sold a player to Barcelona this summer in Aleix Vidal and lost star striker Carlos Bacca to AC Milan amongst others but they've kept the majority of their key players from last season together.

Signings including Konoplyanka, Adil Rami, Steven N'Zonzi, Sergio Escudero, Gael Kakuta, Ciro Immobile, Mariano Ferreira and Krohn-Delhi make for me Sevilla a stronger side than they were last season even despite losing Vidal and Bacca.

Sevilla lost just once at the Pizjuan last season but drew this fixture 1-1 at the Pizjuan last season and with this game coming in Week 13 when Champions League Group stages are still being played this is a fixture that is one that will showcase La Liga at its ultimate best but one Sevilla must use last season's home record to their advantage and get the win in this fixture this season if they want to get that fourth spot.

Real Betis vs. Sevilla

Real Betis's instant return to La Liga was a must for the football club because they are simply too big to lie in the Segunda for too long and it was a shame to see them relegated in a season where they were in the Europa League and to see them go down with little fight as well was frustrating.

Betis are now back though and the good thing about that is the return of the Seville Derby which is one of the most fiercest derbies in European Football and the Estadio Benito Villamarin is going to be a daunting prospect for visiting sides this season and more so for Sevilla in a Seville Derby that is always played with passion, fight and with both sets of supporters displaying hatred for each other from the stands.

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Sevilla is the fourth largest city in Spain and if you take the El Clasico away then the Seville Derby is the best Derby in the whole of La Liga and it's Andalusian's El Clasico that's for sure.

It's a fixture that is full of hatred and full of history of many incidents of violence, assaults and crowd trouble in recent meetings but let's focus on the football and the Benito Villamarin will be rocking for this fixture and it'll be very interesting to see how Sevilla cope with things in Week 16.

Betis's key to survival will be their home record and they can count on their supporters backing them all the way in a stadium which holds 56,000 and they have more than 35,000 season ticket holders and this fixture is one you simply cannot miss and with this being Betis's last home game of 2015 they'll look to end it with bragging rights over their bitter rivals from the Nervion part of the city.

Las Palmas vs. Rayo

This is a fixture that I am really looking forward to watching in La Liga this season and not because it's a very winnable game for both sides but because of both sides styles of play.
Rayo are just a joy to watch and Paco Jemez really took them on last season to a better level so the fact he's in charge for another season at least is great news to us neutrals.

Rayo are so refreshing and a joy to watch because no matter who the opposition they are facing they will always play the same way and that is constant attacking and forgetting about what's behind him and this leads to a poor defensive record and lots of space being given to their opponents but Rayo can score goals too and their attitude to games is 'We'll score more than you'.

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Rayo's defending at times is comical but it is fantastic to see a side like Rayo playing such refreshing football and not sitting back even when they face the likes of Barca and Real.
Las Palmas like to attack and go forward too and last season they had one of the best attacks in the Segunda and in Sergio Araujo they have a young Argentine striker with a 60 million euros release clause who knows where the net is and with Jonathan Viera he formed an attacking duo that finally helped Las Palmas return back to Spain's top flight for the first time in 13 years.

Games like this against Rayo at your home stadium will always be key for any newly promoted side coming into La Liga but given that Las Palmas is closer to Africa than it is Spain and that all 19 sides to visit this season will face distances they've not faced for a La Liga game for some time Las Palmas have something in their favour.

You'll always get space against Rayo whoever you are due to their style of play and a side like Las Palmas must punish sides like Rayo if they're to have any chance of surviving this season because games like these are the ones they are going to have to pick up points in.
Both sides like to attack and neither can defend very well at all and with Las Palmas knowing that games like these can't be lost this really is a game that will be full of attacking and not much defending and it's one you really need to look out for in Week 4.

With the La Liga season beckoning, keep an eye out for the above games and enjoy the majestic Spanish football at its best once again.

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