La Liga Teams Who have Surprised This Season

While the teams at the top of the table towards the end of the season have included the predictable quartet of Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Athletic Bilbao a number of teams have out-performed expectations.

Also, unfortunately, there are some that have failed to live up to theirs, as well as the expectations of their fans.

The world looks to La Liga for some of the most technical football in the world. So making headway in it is a mark of greatness for any team. It’s also why it draws in so many players from the Premier League like Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold who is set to join Real Madrid after spending all his playing career to date with the English club.

His home fans may not approve of the move, and showed it in the team’s clash with Arsenal but it will undoubtedly enhance Real Madrid’s line-up even further next season.

So which are the teams who have really risen to the challenge of La Liga this season, and how have they managed it?

Celta Vigo

The one standout team for the season must surely be Celta Vigo. Last year they finished a fairly lowly 13^th in the league having even been within two points of the relegation zone at one point.

The decline, ironically, began with the appointment of Rafa Benitez as manager in June 2023. Rather than bringing his Champions League-winning knowledge to bear 28 matches in charge brought just five wins and 25 points. What also annoyed fans was his total refusal to give the team’s academy players a chance.

Obviously the streak of not winning couldn’t be allowed to continue and he was sacked, less than a year into his three year contract in March 2024.

His replacement was Claudio Giraldez, a Celta fan who was now being given his opportunity to get the team back onto the right track. His own playing career had been undistinguished and he has used this to tell the Celta players “not to be the donkey I once was”. They seem to have taken his advice to heart, playing exciting, attacking football that has seen them all but assured of European football next season.

In his brief tenure to date Giraldez has trusted young players to perform, especially those who have come up through the Celta Vigo Academy to reach a point where anyone betting on big teams like Villareal to beat them could well find them backing the wrong side.

Rayo Vallecanco

Rayo Vallecanco’s 2023-24 season saw them finish just above the relegation zone in 17^th place and in real danger of going down. But this season it’s been a very different story indeed.

This remarkable turnaround was best exemplified back in February of 2025 when they hit a new team record of going nine games unbeaten after a 1-0 victory over Real Valladoid. Once again, it’s the manager’s role that seems to have been instrumental in this turnaround in form.

Iñigo Pérez’s influence has seen the creation of a team that are so solid in defence that they are very hard to beat. They are also highly aggressive when in the other team’s half, pressing for possession and creating many goal-scoring opportunities.

One player in particular who has been making a huge contribution this season has been goalkeeper Augusto Batalla aided by defenders Abdul Mumin, Florian Lejeune, Andrei Rațiu and Pep Chavarría. 

The midfield is bolstered by the talented Pathé Ciss, Unai López, Óscar Valentín and, up-front, top scorer Jorge de Frutos is well supported by Álvaro García.

Put them all together and it makes for a team that, while not really in contention for a place in the Europa League, is definitely heading in the right direction.

Mallorca

Considering that this is only Mallorca’s fourth successive season in the top flight of Spanish football, their rise from 15^th in 2024 to 9^th this year shows steady progress. This is another team that has been energised by the arrival of a new head coach.

In this case, it’s Jagoba Arrasate, appointed in June 2024 on a three-year contract. What is most remarkable is that he has instigated this turnaround without spending large amounts on transfers. This season mainly saw the return of loaned players like Iddrisu Baba from Almeria, and Leo Roman from Oviedo as well as the relatively modest €1 million purchase of Johan Mojica from Villareal.

This is sure to have pleased the club’s American owners who saved the club from near bankruptcy back in 2016.

Stars of the squad who are now giving their all for Arrasate include Cyle Larin and vice captain Dani Rodriguez. They also benefit from one of the league’s strongest defences thanks to players like Martin Valjent and captain Antonio Raillo.

So a mid-table finish will be more than many had been expecting to the team, and a solid foundation going forward into 2025-2026.

And some not so successful teams . . .

Looking at the lower end of the La Liga table, there are some teams that have not been thriving this season and leading the way is Sevilla.

Having failed to win any games since March 9^th and hovering dangerously close to the relegation zone at 16^th place in the table a loss against Celta Vigo proved to be the final straw for fans. According to reports, they besieged the club’s training ground after the match, forcing players and officials to spend the night there, barricaded in.

While it looks like the team might still just avoid the drop, the same can’t be said for two of the teams promoted this season. Real Valladolid and Leganes who look destined to return to the Segunda División from whence they came.