Although the pull of the Champions League is always powerful when it comes to Real Madrid, this year the league has a special appeal for the club. Both the team and the institution want a title that they've not won since 2012, so much so that it has become an all-consuming obsession.
The Tenth and Eleventh European titles are enough to sustain the international prestige of Madrid, but there is now an expectation to recover the league and in so doing, end a period of clear hegemony for Barcelona.
Points make prizes
Winning the next four league games will mean that Real will be league champions regardless of what anyone else does.Twelve points will mark an insurmountable distance and the first variable of this equation can be written on Sunday at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu. A win would be worth four points to them; the three for a victory plus the goal-average, thanks to Sergio Ramos' last-minute equaliser at the Camp Nou.
Opposite moods
Madrid is not euphoric because they've not yet gained anything. The elimination of Bayern however - a team that was considered as the great rival of Madrid in the fight for the Champions League in 16/17 - has contributed to increasing the self-esteem of the group. On the opposite side, there is a Barcelona side who know, if they lose, that the result will be underscoring the end of an era.
In the heat of the Bernabeu
Madrid expect the best from the Bernabeu in Sunday's match and there are no doubts about the involvement from those in the stands. The closest precedent invites optimism. Everyone in the Los Blancos dressing room highlighted the role played by the home support in the comeback against Bayern. Although the Bavarians went ahead twice, the team and fans were never disconnected and both kept pressure on the visitors to the end.
Ready ... for Europe
In Madrid there is a rush to get the league won, something that could happen if Real emerge victorious in Sunday's El Clasico.
It would also be the best way to approach the semifinals of the Champions League against Atletico. No distractions between May 2 and 10, when they face the Rojiblancos.
A six-point gap in the league will allow Zidane and his side some leeway, especially considering there will still be the postponed game against Celta Vigo in the Estadio Balaidos to play.
