The international break is over, meaning the beloved Spanish top-flight will finally be making its return. The action gets underway as early as Friday, with Athletic Club's 3 p.m. ET trip to Levante bringing an end to La Liga's near two-week pause.
This round will continue all the way until Monday, with eight of the 10 fixtures scheduled to go down over the weekend. European giants Barcelona, for example, will take to the field on Saturday in a highly-anticipated fixture as this will be their first match since appointing Xavi Hernandez as the new manager. Atletico will also be in action that same day, with Simeone's men taking on Osasuna as they look to make up ground in their title defense.
Real Sociedad and Real Madrid – the top two teams in the table – will return to the pitch on Sunday as both sides look to seize the advantage in what has so far been a tight Spanish top-flight title race. Here is everything you need to know about Matchday 14.
La Liga standings ahead of Matchday 14?
| Pos. | Team | MP | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | P | Form | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Real Madrid | 32 | 25 | 6 | 1 | 70 | 22 | +48 | 81 | WWWWW | |
| 2 | Barcelona | 32 | 21 | 7 | 4 | 64 | 37 | +27 | 70 | LWWWW | |
| 3 | Girona | 32 | 21 | 5 | 6 | 67 | 40 | +27 | 68 | WLWLW | |
| 4 | Atlético Madrid | 32 | 19 | 4 | 9 | 59 | 38 | +21 | 61 | LWWLL | |
| 5 | Athletic Club | 32 | 16 | 10 | 6 | 52 | 30 | +22 | 58 | DDLWW | |
| 6 | Real Sociedad | 32 | 13 | 12 | 7 | 46 | 34 | +12 | 51 | DDWWW | |
| 7 | Real Betis | 32 | 12 | 12 | 8 | 40 | 38 | +2 | 48 | WWLLL | |
| 8 | Valencia | 32 | 13 | 8 | 11 | 35 | 34 | +1 | 47 | LWWDL | |
| 9 | Villarreal | 32 | 11 | 9 | 12 | 51 | 55 | -4 | 42 | WDLWW | |
| 10 | Getafe | 32 | 9 | 13 | 10 | 38 | 44 | -6 | 40 | DDLWL | |
| 11 | Osasuna | 32 | 11 | 6 | 15 | 37 | 46 | -9 | 39 | LLWLL | |
| 12 | Sevilla | 32 | 9 | 10 | 13 | 41 | 45 | -4 | 37 | WWWLD | |
| 13 | Las Palmas | 32 | 10 | 7 | 15 | 30 | 39 | -9 | 37 | LLLLL | |
| 14 | Deportivo Alavés | 32 | 9 | 8 | 15 | 28 | 38 | -10 | 35 | WLLLW | |
| 15 | Rayo Vallecano | 32 | 7 | 13 | 12 | 27 | 39 | -12 | 34 | WDDWL | |
| 16 | Mallorca | 32 | 6 | 13 | 13 | 26 | 38 | -12 | 31 | LLDWL | |
| 17 | Celta de Vigo | 32 | 7 | 10 | 15 | 37 | 47 | -10 | 31 | WLDWL | |
| 18 | Cádiz | 32 | 4 | 13 | 15 | 22 | 45 | -23 | 25 | LLWLW | |
| 19 | Granada | 32 | 3 | 9 | 20 | 33 | 61 | -28 | 18 | DWLLL | |
| 20 | Almería | 32 | 1 | 11 | 20 | 31 | 64 | -33 | 14 | LDLWD |
Top games to watch on Matchday 14 in La Liga
Barcelona vs Espanyol: Xavi will be making his debut as Barcelona manager this Saturday, and what a game it will be to start his reign at the Camp Nou, as the Blaugrana will take on Catalan rivals Espanyol this weekend. While many have called for patience for the iconic former midfielder, who, despite his excellent spell at Al Sadd, remains an inexperienced tactician. However, the Spaniard is fully aware that he must turn the club's fortunes around immediately as the European giants rot in ninth place in the Primera Division table, having won a third of their opening 12 matches (4).
Granada vs Real Madrid: League leaders Real Sociedad will be in for a tricky test this weekend, meaning should Real Madrid triumph in their trip to Granada, then the Spanish giants could go top of the table with a game in-hand over La Real. However, Los Blancos must first win their tie, which is expected of them given that their opponents sit one spot above the relegation zone. Despite this, Ancelotti's men have not won a game by a two-or-more goal margin since their 5-0 thrashing of Shakhtar five games ago, meaning Benzema and Co. will need to rediscover their stride.
Real Sociedad vs Valencia: As mentioned earlier, the league leaders will be in for a tricky test. Valencia are no longer one of Spain's top teams, with the visitors currently residing in 10th with four wins and four defeats from 13 outings (D5). Despite all of this, Los Che should never be taken lightly given their history and stature in Spanish football, meaning Isak and Co. will have to be at their best if they wish to avoid relinquishing the no.1 spot to Real Madrid or Sevilla, who are only a point behind.
Who's in and who's out?
Here are the list of players ruled out for the upcoming round from La Liga's top clubs:
Barcelona: Aguero, Dembele, Fati, Nico Gonzalez, Dani Alves, and Sergino Dest
Real Madrid: Ceballos, Bale
Atletico Madrid: Kieran Trippier
Real Sociedad: Zubeldia (out); Guridi, Monreal, and Illarramendi (doubtful)
