Atletico Madrid are every purist’s new second team. Sadly, they’ve got a far tougher job ahead of them in their bid to replicate last season’s exploits after significant reinforcements were made in the transfer window by both Real Madrid and Barcelona.
Elsewhere, it’s likely that a crop of new talent will emerge from La Liga this year as fans and pundits call for a regeneration of Spanish football after the national team suffered a humiliating meltdown at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
But whether it’s Atleti, Galacticos 2.0 or the new Barca project (under former player Luis Enrique) who scoops the La Liga title this year, there’s one guarantee: it’s likely to be another unmissable season in Spain.