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Agence France-Presse

Real Madrid need one victory to secure La Liga after they held off a second-half comeback from Granada on Monday to win 2-1 and move four points clear of Barcelona.
With two games left, Madrid will be crowned champions if they beat Villarreal at home on Thursday regardless of how Barca fare at the Camp Nou against Osasuna.
But they were made to sweat by a Granada team that are gunning for Europe and have been arguably the division’s surprise of the season after being promoted from the second tier last year.
Ferland Mendy and Karim Benzema looked to have set Madrid on course for a comfortable win at Los Carmenes but Granada were transformed after the break and Darwin Machis’s 50th-minute strike gave them hope.
Kenedy target of Chinese social media fury after pushing Wu Lei
An increasingly nervous Madrid were clinging on by the end and needed Sergio Ramos to clear one shot off the line as Zinedine Zidane’s side dug in for a ninth consecutive victory.
“Our vision when we start every season is to win the league,” Zidane said. “There are two games left. We are close but we’re not there yet.”

When the final whistle blew, Zidane roared with relief and Ramos clenched his fists after coming through their toughest test since the restart.
“We can’t relax, we’re a bit closer but we have to carry on,” Ramos said afterwards.
La Liga off but there is light amid Spain’s coronavirus lockdown
“We let our guard down here a bit on the second half. We won the first half and lost the second and maybe that’s a warning for us. We have to make sure we don’t repeat that mistake.”
Madrid could win La Liga for the third time in eight years at the Alfredo di Stefano Stadium on Thursday night. “It would mean a lot,” Ramos said.
“It’s the prize for consistency over the whole year. Maybe we had a period of reflection during the suspension and we came back and reacted. We’re in the race and hopefully on Thursday we can celebrate.”
If Madrid slip up against Villarreal, they will still have a second chance on Sunday when they finish at Leganes while Barcelona visit Alaves.
Machis’s goal was the first Madrid have conceded in six matches but few would have seen it coming after the first half.
Madrid scored twice in six minutes, with both goals coming from breaks down their left.
Mendy had space in front of him and kept going, accelerating between Victor Diaz and Dimitri Foulquier before firing high and into the roof of the net from an acute angle.
The second goal came down the same side, Isco’s back-heel allowing Luka Modric to switch left to Benzema, who this time cut inside Diaz and shot into the far corner.
Wolves target Wu Lei scores on Covid-19 comeback for Espanyol
Madrid cruised through the rest of the half, pushing the ball around at will, but comfort perhaps created complacency and Granada improved after the break.
Machis pulled a goal back, striking through the legs of Courtois after Casemiro was dispossessed in midfield and Madrid were rattled as Granada began to dictate play.
A scramble in Madrid’s six-yard box saw several players hacking at the ball in panic and Courtois was twice required to make smart saves late on.
The closest Granada came was when the ball fell to Ramon Azeez at the back post and he fired towards the near post with Courtois stranded but Ramos was on the line to clear.
Earlier, Villarreal’s hopes of Champions League football were dashed after they lost 2-1 at home to Real Sociedad to confirm that fourth-placed Sevilla will join Atletico Madrid, Barcelona and Real Madrid in the competition next season.
Villarreal remain fifth, three points ahead of Getafe and Real Sociedad, with all three hoping to secure a place in the Europa League. Getafe drew 0-0 against Alaves.



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Spanish La Liga

Real Madrid one win from La Liga crown after beating Granada

Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos celebrates with his teammate Luka Modric after the win over Granada. Photo: AP

Granada's Spanish forward Carlos Fernandez (R) challenges Real Madrid's Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois (L) and French defender Ferland Mendy (down) during the Spanish league football match Granada FC vs Real Madrid CF at Nuevo Los Carmenes stadium in Granada on July 13, 2020. (Photo by JORGE GUERRERO / AFP)

Champions League draw: Manchester City or Real Madrid to face Lyon or Juventus in last eight; Napoli or Barca vs Chelsea or Bayern

Two-time Champions League winner Paulo Sousa conducts the draw for the 2019/20 competition in Nyon, Switzerland. Photos: Uefa

Result of the Champions League quarter-final draw.

Club representatives at Champions League draw.

Manchester United’s China flop Dong Fangzhuo tells Wolves target Wu Lei to move to England

Espanyol’s Chinese forward Wu Lei warms up before a La Liga game. He has been advised to move to England by former Manchester United striker Dong Fangzhuo. Photo: AFP

Britain's Manchester United's Fangzhuo Dong [Dong Fangzhou] (3rd L) celebrates his goal with team mates Danny Simpson (L), Wes Brown (2nd L) and John O'Shea after scoring against South Africa's Kaiser Chief during their soccer match in Cape Town, South Africa July 18, 2006. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings (SOUTH AFRICA)

La Liga: Kenedy target of Chinese social media fury after pushing Wu Lei

Espanyol's Chinese forward Wu Lei shoots on goal in their La Liga match against Getafe. Photo: AFP

Sport

Football


With two games left, Madrid will be crowned champions if they beat Villarreal at home on Thursday regardless of how Barcelona fare at the Camp Nou against Osasuna



With two games left, Madrid will be crowned champions if they beat Villarreal at home on Thursday regardless of how Barcelona fare at the Camp Nou against Osasuna.


Real Madrid one win from La Liga crown after beating Granada

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;} With two games left, Madrid will be crowned champions if they beat Villarreal at home on Thursday regardless of how Barcelona fare at the Camp Nou against Osasuna

With two games left, Madrid will be crowned champions if they beat Villarreal at home on Thursday regardless of how Barcelona fare at the Camp Nou against Osasuna