Madrid, Aug 13 (IANS) The new La Liga season kicks off this weekend with FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Atletico Madrid the main title favourites. While Barcelona will be hoping to defend their title, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid will try to thwart them and regain the title they have won many times in the past.

Here are four things to look out for as the ball gets rolling again in Spain:

1. Who will play for FC Barcelona in Mallorca?

FC Barcelona’s pre-season has been impressive, with Sunday’s 5-0 win over Como only highlighting the form of Pedri, Lamine Yamal, and company, but Hansi Flick still has to deal with the club’s economic problems, which have hung like a dark shadow over the summer, reports Xinhua.

Although goalkeeper Joan Garcia and striker Marcus Rashford have both been signed, wage ceiling limitations mean that Barca still hasn’t been able to register the pair in its first team squad, and Gerard Martin and Wojciech Szczesny (who signed new contracts) are also waiting for clearance.

Inigo Martinez’s departure, along with Marc Andre Ter Stegen’s agreement (under pressure) to say he will be out for five months due to injury, have freed some space, but not enough to include everyone in the squad.

The question is: who will play in Mallorca in Barca’s opening match, and who will be in the stands?

2. How prepared is Real Madrid for the season opener?

Real Madrid asked for and was refused more time to prepare for the new season ahead of Tuesday’s season opener at home to Osasuna.

New coach Xabi Alonso took Real Madrid to the semifinal of the Club World Cup this summer, and it was possible to see some players taking on the new coach’s footballing concepts before a painful exit against Paris Saint-Germain. Alonso has had two more weeks with his players since returning to work on August 4, so it will be interesting to see just how far he has been able to progress, although a 4-0 win in a friendly in Austria on Tuesday night implied things are going well.

Osasuna also has a new coach in Alessio Lisci, and the team from Pamplona has slowly improved over pre-season.

3. Atletico: Time to shake off shackles

Atletico Madrid has again been the biggest spender in Spain as Diego Simeone’s side looks to mount a serious challenge to Barca and Real Madrid. Alex Baena looks as if he will provide an extra attacking threat alongside Julian Alvarez and Alexander Sorloth, and on paper, Atletico looks strong.

Simeone’s men kick off the season away to Espanyol, which has also been a big mover this summer (although mainly bringing in free transfers), and this is the sort of match Atletico need three points from if they are to make a serious challenge.

Last season, it was draws, not defeats, that cost Atletico the title, so will Simeone look to attack from the start? Sunday’s game should tell us a lot.

4. Can Athletic Club turn around a dreadful pre-season?

Athletic Bilbao has had a terrible pre-season with a host of injuries and defeats in its last six preparation games before starting the season at home to Sevilla.

While it’s true Athletic has played sides such as Liverpool and Arsenal, the team has looked a shadow of the outfit that ended last season in a meritorious fourth place, and injuries to Oihan Sancet, Benat Prados, and Unai Gomez, and a suspension for Yeray Alvarez have robbed coach Ernesto Valverde of several key players.

Valverde’s sides tend to start slowly and improve as they reach peak fitness, with Athletic winning its opening game of the season just once in the nine seasons he has been in charge. Sevilla has its own problems and has been unable to register new players in the squad, and will have an under-strength side, making this game tough to predict.

–IANS

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