Real, Barcelona, and Atletico aren’t what they used to be.
Over the past five years, Spanish teams have dominated European football. The Champions League has gone nowhere other than to Spain. In 2014, Real beat Athletico. In 2015, Barcelona demolished Juventus. After that, Real won the title three consecutive years.
But times may be changing. This year Real Madrid has lost three and has a draw in its four previous fixtures. Barcelona has registered one win, three draws, and a loss in five previous fixtures. And Atletico hasn’t been at its best, either domestically or internationally, this season.
Since the departures of Xavi, Puyol, and Abidal, Barcelona has managed to win the Champions League only once. In 2016, they lost in the semi-finals against Juventus and, last year, they were knocked-out by Roma. This summer, Real Madrid sold the most decorated player in the history of the club, Cristiano Ronaldo. In the Champions League, Madrid has already lost 1-0 to the Russian club, CSKA Moscow.
It looks to me as though Spanish dominance is a thing of the past.
