Real Madrid kept the hopes of retaining their La Liga title alive as Nacho’s second-half goal earned Los Blancos a narrow victory over Athletic Bilbao.
Madrid has beaten Bilbao more than any other side and it was no different as Nacho scored the winner in the 68th minute that was enough to secure the 3 points for the champions.
Defending champions Real remain two points behind leaders Atletico Madrid with one game remaining.
Real face Villarreal next weekend in what becomes a must-win.
In a game of few clear chances, Raul Garcia also received a late red card for a foul in the 89th minute as Real defended well to make sure to hold onto a crucial 3 points that sees them with an outside chance of retaining their league crown.
La Liga was a three-horse race for the past two months with no teams taking their chances to pull away ahead in the title race. At one point in time, Atletico Madrid were 14 points clear at the top but an injury to Luis Suarez hampered their attack as they struggled to score goals.
With two minutes remaining in their match against Osasuna, Atleti were being held 1-1 and Real were heading top based on their superior head-to-head record.
However, Luis Suarez scored a late winner to leave the title in the hands of their city rivals.
Barcelona also blew several opportunities to move to the top of La Liga and their 2-1 loss to Celta de Vigo at home in the Camp Nou was the final nail in their coffin as they are officially out of the title race going into the last game day of the Spanish season.
Zinedine Zidane’s side must now hope Diego Simeone’s side slip up against Real Valladolid in their final match next Sunday as a draw or loss would mean victory for Los Blancos will ensure they retain their La Liga crown.
