MADRID, July 17: There was Zinedine Zidane again, being thrown into the air by his Real Madrid players in another title celebration.
With the Frenchman back in charge, Madrid is back to collecting major trophies.
Madrid clinched its 34th Spanish league title and first since 2017 after extending its perfect run following the pandemic break with a 2-1 win over Villarreal on Thursday, opening a seven-point gap to second-place Barcelona with one round to go. Barcelona lost to 10-man Osasuna at the Camp Nou Stadium.
Karim Benzema scored twice to give Madrid its 10th consecutive league victory. It was the only team with a perfect record after the coronavirus-enforced break, having trailed Barcelona by two points before the league was halted.
This is one of the best days in my life professionally, said Zidane, who also won the Champions League and World Cup as a player. It�s another league title, after the confinement and everything else that happened. I wish we could celebrate with the fans, but I�m sure they are very happy at home seeing their team win the league again. Zidane quit as Madrid coach in 2018 after leading the team to three straight Champions League titles, then returned less than a year later with the team floundering. In his first full season back in charge, Madrid wrested the league title away from Barcelona for the first time in three years.
It was also Madrid�s first league title since Cristiano Ronaldo left to join Juventus two seasons ago.
The title celebrations were subdued as the triumph came with Madrid playing at its training center because the Santiago Bernabu Stadium remains undergoing renovation work.
Fans have not been allowed into games since the pandemic, and Madrid had warned supporters not to gather at the team�s traditional celebration spots in the Spanish capital. Most of the early celebrations came from fans honking their car horns across the city�s streets.
Captain Sergio Ramos lifted the trophy at the empty Alfredo Di Stfano Stadium as confetti went into the air behind him and his teammates. Players later threw Zidane into the air a few times, then they all posed for photos in front of one of the goals.
�It has been a strange season after everything that has happened,� said Ramos, who won his fifth Spanish league title. After the confinement we knew that we had to win every match to clinch the title. There was no margin for error. Barcelona had won the last two league titles but stuttered after the break, drawing three times and losing once after the league resumed. � AP
