With their La Liga title defence now in serious jeopardy, Real Madrid host Mallorca with their season on the line.
Who: Real Madrid vs Mallorca
What: Spanish La Liga – Match day 36
Where: Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid, Spain
When: Wednesday at 9.30pm local time (19:30 GMT)
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Fresh from their demoralising 4-3 defeat at Barcelona in El Clasico on Sunday, Real Madrid will now face Mallorca at home at the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday as they desperately try to keep their La Liga title defence alive.
With three rounds to play, the championship calculus is relatively simple: Real need to keep winning and hope Barcelona, who have lost only two games in 2025 across all competitions, lose their remaining three league games.
Here are the key talking points as the Spanish giants embark on their must-win Match day 36 fixture against Mallorca, who currently sit ninth on the La Liga ladder:
Barcelona’s dramatic 4-3 come-from-behind victory against Real on Sunday was undoubtedly the most devastating defeat of the four El Clasico fixtures Madrid have conceded to their great rivals in the 2024-25 season.
On most days, star striker Kylian Mbappe’s two goals in the opening 14 minutes of El Clasico, followed by a hat-trick in the 70th minute, would have been enough to bury any team in the Spanish top-flight – but this Barcelona side is the exception.
Real Madrid now find themselves seven points behind the Catalan giants with just three rounds remaining in La Liga.
The basic maths is quite straightforward: if Real lose or draw with Mallorca on Wednesday, Barcelona – even if they lost their last three matches – would win the La Liga title on a countback; if Real beat Mallorca on Wednesday and Barcelona defeat Espanyol on Thursday, then Barcelona are instantly crowned champions.
Real Madrid began the season as the defending La Liga champions with lofty aspirations to complete a rare title treble: La Liga, Copa del Rey and UEFA Champions League.
They did win the UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Intercontinental Cup this season, but lost the Supercopa and Copa del Rey finals to Barcelona, while they were eliminated from the Champions League by Arsenal at the quarterfinal stage.
Real are 0-4 against Barcelona this season, having lost both La Liga fixtures as well as the aforementioned Supercopa and Copa del Rey finals.
It was announced on Monday that manager Carlo Ancelotti will leave Real Madrid for a second time, despite having a year remaining on his contract, after the Italian signed on to coach Brazil before the FIFA World Cup 2026.
Speculation of his departure had been in play for weeks after the 65-year-old all but admitted to the media he might leave the club after the Copa del Rey final loss to Barcelona on April 26.
Also on Monday, multiple Spanish media outlets reported that former Real Madrid star midfielder – and current Bayer Leverkusen manager – Xabi Alonso is set to become the club’s next boss on a three-year deal when he leaves the German club after this season.
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