It’s the final countdown, the last stretch before the big titles of the season are decided. With a little more than two months to go before the 2012/13 season comes to a close, the Blaugrana find themselves battling on two fronts: La Liga and the Champions League.
Front runners in the league
FC Barcelona sit atop of the table with a 13-point advantage over Real Madrid, who are second, with 10 games left on the schedule. With 30 points left in play, Barça must claim 18 in order to mathematically clinch the league. It’s worth noting that five of the remaining ten league games will be played at the Camp Nou, where Barça have yet to drop a match (13 victories and 1 draw). The teams set to play away to Barça are Mallorca (week 30), Levante (week 32), Betis (week 34), Valladolid (week 36) and Málaga (week 38). Conversely, the Blaugrana will visit Zaragoza (week 31), Athletic Club (week 33), Atlético Madrid (week 35) and Espanyol (week 37).
Champions League
The league is one thing, but the Champions League is a whole different beast. Barça will face Paris Saint-Germain at the Parc des Princes on April 2 for the away leg of the quarter-finals of the European competition. The return leg at the Camp Nou will be played a week later, April 10. The other six teams in the quarter-finals are Real Madrid, Galatasaray, Bayern Munich, Juventus, Málaga and Borussia Dortmund. If Barça defeat PSG, they’ll get their name in the hat for the semi-final draw. Much like the quarter-final draw, it’s worth noting that teams from the same federation could be paired up against each other (Real Madrid or Málaga). The away leg semi-finals is scheduled for April 23 or 24, while the return leg will be played a week later, April 30 or May 1. The final will be hosted at Wembley on May 25.
