Barcelona arrive at the Estadio de Mendizorroza on Wednesday night as La Liga champions, and Deportivo Alavés will be asked to stand in the guard of honor after the Catalan club sealed the 2025–26 title with a 2-0 win over Real Madrid in El Clásico on Sunday.
That result gave Barcelona a 29th La Liga title and left them with three games still to play, with 100 points still within reach. For Alavés, the timing is uncomfortable. Quique Sánchez Flores’s side are in the drop zone, and the standings make every point matter, even against a team that has been firing on all cylinders in recent weeks.
The gap in momentum is as clear as the gap in the table. Barcelona have already taken care of the biggest prize and now travel without the pressure that usually shadows a title race, while Alavés need a result that could lift them as high as 13th. Wednesday night is less about celebration for one side than survival for the other, and that changes the mood at Mendizorroza before the first whistle.
The match also brings a familiar set of absences into focus. Facundo Garcés remains suspended and is not expected to play again this season, while Lucas Boyé is the only confirmed player unavailable through injury. Those limits matter for Alavés because Barcelona’s title has not slowed their form, and the visitors are still being judged as a side capable of finishing strongly.
The standings, then, tell two very different stories at once. Barcelona are already champions and still chasing a final points target that would underline the scale of their season, while Alavés are trying to climb out of danger with little room left to waste. The result on Wednesday night will not change the title, but it could go a long way toward deciding how hard the final stretch feels for both clubs.
Prediction: Deportivo Alavés 0-2 Barcelona.
