Five thoughts from the final weekend of the La Liga season as Real Madrid were confirmed as champions, Atletico Madrid said goodbye to the Calderon, and odds and ends were tied up elsewhere.
1. Madrid suffering makes the title joy even sweeter
So often during the 2016-17 season Real Madrid have left it late in games to win points, but on Sunday at Malaga Zinedine Zidane's side got things under control early to clinch a deserved title win.
Needing a draw, even if Barcelona won their game, Cristiano Ronaldo's goal 83 second goal removed most of the sense of drama on the final day, with Karim Benzema's clincher just after half-time leading to a 2-0 win against a Malaga team who battled well but never really had a chance.
It had not always been so straightforward over the last nine months, with Madrid having regularly found themselves in trouble in games. But they showed their spirit by taking 17 points with goals scored in the last 10 minutes of games, showing the desire and, at times, good fortune required.
After being soaked with champagne by his players at the postmatch news conference, Zidane once again talked about "suffering" at moments along the way.
Zidane then suggested all those travails over the 38 games made winning the Spanish title even sweeter than a Champions League success, with the 1998 World Cup winner even saying it was "different" to taste success as a coach this was the "happiest day of my professional life."
2. Barca end season in typical fashion
Barcelona's performance at the Camp Nou on Sunday evening was typical of their 2016-17 season, as they somehow found themselves 2-0 down at home to Eibar before rallying to win 4-2 in the end for a triumph which tasted bittersweet at best.
Over the 38 games, Barca have generally done the hard bits well: They won 3-2 at Madrid in April's Clasico and got victories at Atletico Madrid, Sevilla, Espanyol, Athletic Bilbao and Valencia -- something not even Pep Guardiola's all-conquering side ever managed in one season. They also scored more goals than ever before, with a record 116 (37 for Pichichi top scorer Lionel Messi.
But they coasted on too many occasions this year, from their early season loss at home to Alaves, to points dropped unforgivably at Deportivo La Coruna and Malaga in recent weeks.
In end they just did not want the title as much as Madrid did, and lacked the squad depth to allow big players to get physical and mental rest during the campaign. Captain Andres Iniesta more or less admitted this afterward the game, saying: "There was another team [Madrid] who were a bit better and deserved to win the title. We lacked the consistency to be champions. It has been a pity."
Outgoing coach Luis Enrique claimed on Saturday, before it was all decided that: "The line which separates success from failure at this level is very fine." But in the end the gap between this season's Barca and Madrid appeared much larger than just the three points separating them in the table.
3. Goodbye Calderon, hello uncertain future
Fifty years after Luis Aragones scored the first goal at the Estadio Manzanares (later renamed the Vicente Calderon) in a 1-0 win over Valencia, his former charge for both club and country Fernando Torres scored a first half brace in the club's last game at the stadium.
Sunday afternoon's game finished with Atletico beating Athletic Bilbao 3-1, with the old stadium hosting a celebratory party at which coach Diego Simeone appeared to commit his future to the cause, saying "some teams might have more money, more trophies, but nobody can match the feeling you have for this club."
#hastasiemprecalderon pic.twitter.com/SEVYIFrAT9
- Radioestadio (@Radioestadio) May 21, 2017
Atletico move into their Wanda Metropolitano home for next year, with other comments from Simeone recently suggesting he wants his board to take the "next steps" to compete better at the very top. Amid all the emotion the 33-year-old Torres, now out of contract, said he hopes to stay. But the summer is likely to see more hard-headed thinking from Atletico's decision-makers.
4. Europa League spots decided
Villarreal's 3-1 win at Valencia on Sunday afternoon meant they finished fifth, with Fran Escriba having quietly done an excellent job in keeping the Yellow Submarine on course for the Europa League again next year. Real Sociedad also confirmed a place in that competition, thanks to Juanmi's injury time header landing his side a 2-2 draw at Celta Vigo.
Athletic's 3-1 defeat at the Calderon means they now have to wait a week to see if seventh place will be enough for the final Europa League qualifier spot, as Alaves will take it should they shock Barcelona in next Saturday's Copa del Rey final.
5 Managerial merry-go-round takes off
What looks to be Jorge Sampaoli's final game in charge of Sevilla before taking the Argentina national job was a handy 5-0 win over relegated Osasuna. The acclaim which Sampaoli had enjoyed earlier in the campaign had turned to whistles by the time he left the Sanchez Pizjuan on Saturday, having guided the team to fourth place and a Champions League playoff spot.
Sevilla are set to appoint another Argentine, Eduardo Berizzo, who announced he was leaving Celta Vigo on Saturday, and auditioned well for a bigger job in by reaching this season's Europa League semifinals.
Also moving up is Ernesto Valverde, who is almost certainly leaving Athletic to replace Luis Enrique at the Camp Nou, with Athletic's B team coach Jose Angel "Cuco" Ziganda tipped to take over the senior side at San Mames. Meanwhile, Quique Setien's last game of a rollercoaster time at Las Palmas was a 3-0 defeat at Deportivo La Coruna. Setien is set to take over at Real Betis, assuming their current president is not unseated at a club assembly next month.