With five weeks of Europe’s biggest domestic league seasons left to play, all kinds of strange scorelines are starting to roll in.

Nerves come into play, desperation takes hold, and, for the players, reputations are there to be made as title chases and relegation scraps enter their most crucial stretch.

Nowhere has the flipping of the form books been more striking than in La Liga, where two weekends ago — for only the third time in history — each of the bottom five teams picked up maximum points.

In addition to rock-bottom Real Oviedo’s shock 3-0 victory at in-form Celta, and Levante’s nail-biting 1-0 win against Getafe, Real Mallorca thumped Rayo Vallecano, while Sevilla took advantage of facing a heavily rotated Atletico Madrid side.

Elche slipped past Valencia, and even Alaves sealed a dramatic 3-3 draw away to Real Sociedad in the week before their Copa del Rey win, meaning all of the bottom six at least avoided defeat.

It means just three points separate Elche in 18th and Rayo all the way up in 13th, with even the season’s two stragglers within touching distance of the safety line.

And there are still 10 games left to play between direct relegation contenders, kicking off with Valencia’s trip to Mallorca tonight (Tuesday). When two teams are tied on points in La Liga, league position is decided by their head-to-head record rather than goal difference.

With plenty of twists and turns still to come, The Athletic shines a spotlight on the relegation battle you didn’t know you needed to know about.

A true clash of styles

Tactics are usually relatively straightforward in the thick of a relegation struggle, as the league’s most under-resourced sides do everything they can to level the playing field with physicality and direct attacks. That is not necessarily the case in Spain.

The visualisation below represents in-possession styles, plotting teams and their average number of passes per possession sequence against the speed at which they move the ball towards goal.

In the bottom-right corner, first-placed champions Barcelona are the side who string together the most intricate passing sequences and attack the most patiently, while Jose Bordalas’ Getafe are clear outliers on the opposite side. Meanwhile, the eight teams in realistic danger of relegation are spread out across the board.

Towards one extreme are Elche, committed to a brave, possession-heavy style under 45-year-old coach Eder Sarabia. A former assistant to Quique Setien at Las Palmas, Real Betis and Barcelona, his debut managerial job saw him take FC Andorra into the Spanish second tier for the first time in their history, where they ended the season with more of the ball (66.6 per cent) than any other side.

He led Elche to promotion last season with similar possession figures, and initially managed to adapt that quick pass-and-move style to La Liga. From the expansive line-breaking passing of centre-back David Affengruber to the silky dribbling of Real Madrid academy graduate Aleix Febas and Martim Neto in midfield, they went seven games unbeaten to start the season, capturing the imagination with a series of swirling passing moves and incisive team goals.

But the feel-good factor quickly faded, with errors creeping into their build-up, while they struggled to maintain their pressing intensity at the other end. Defensive numbers slipped as they endured a torrid mid-season run.

Crucial recent wins against Mallorca and Valencia mean Sarabia’s side are still in touching distance of safety, while their adventurous style persists, despite its obvious risks.

Directly below them, Levante are one of Spain’s most no-nonsense sides. Although they have attempted almost 5,000 fewer passes than Elche, they have completed more ending inside the opposition penalty box, pointing to their uncomplicated approach.

New coach Luis Castro has doubled down on those ideas following his arrival in late December — no La Liga side has scored more goals from crosses (nine) since then. It is how they finally broke through against Getafe last weekend, as Carlos Espi stooped low to break the deadlock late on.

In between, Rayo have struck a balance under former Andoni Iraola assistant Inigo Perez. The Madrid-based side continue to set the standard for high-intensity sprints in La Liga this season, while adding layers to their possession play. Alaves are happy to chase their opponents up the pitch, Mallorca are more comfortable sitting back, while Sevilla have adopted a direct approach since Luis Garcia Plaza took over in March.

Rayo Vallecano coach Inigo Perez, centre, was previously Andoni Iraola’s assistant (Florencia Tan Jun/Getty Images)

Many of La Liga’s remaining relegation six-pointers will hinge on these contrasting approaches.

In-form strikers

Since the start of 2026, four of La Liga’s most prolific goalscorers play for sides in the bottom six.

Leading the way is Mallorca’s Vedat Muriqi, the Kosovo forward who is only trailing Kylian Mbappe by two goals in the race for the Pichichi Trophy. The 31-year-old target man scored a late winner against Mbappe’s Madrid to hoist Mallorca out of the bottom three a fortnight ago, and was mobbed by his team-mates as the final whistle blew.

“Although I may come across ugly and tough, I’m also human,” he told broadcaster Movistar through tears after the game. He missed a last-gasp penalty against Elche before an international break in which his Kosovo side missed out on World Cup qualification with a narrow defeat to Turkey.

Standing at 6ft 4in (194cm), Muriqi is a terrifying presence in the penalty area. Only Manchester United’s Casemiro has scored more than his six headed goals across Europe’s top-five leagues this term.

His approach to the game is unashamedly intense, launching himself at crosses and scrapping with centre-halves. He will have a huge say in the relegation race.

Similarly unstoppable at the moment is Levante forward Espi, with seven goals in his last six La Liga appearances. The 20-year-old only made his first start in the Spanish top flight against Villarreal in mid-February. Since then, he has hit more shots on target than any other player, with two winning goals and two crucial equalisers to his name.

Espi is another sturdy striker, just as tall as Muriqi and equally dominant in the air. He battled admirably against Getafe’s ultra-physical back five last weekend, hurling himself into challenges and barging into the space in behind, with his late header just reward for another enterprising performance at the top of the pitch.

Argentine forward Lucas Boye approaches the game in a similarly powerful fashion for Alaves. Federico Vinas, the on-loan Uruguay international from Liga MX side Leon, has scored six of Oviedo’s last 11 goals and is more of a busy, bustling centre-forward who brings energy and a sharp scoring instinct from crosses and knockdowns in the box.

Each has hit a real scoring rhythm when their teams need them most.

Predicting the run-in

Which way will the relegation race turn next? The fixture list offers some clues.

Using Opta’s power rankings to estimate the relative difficulty of each side’s remaining games, Carlos Corberan’s Valencia have the most to fear. Starting with an all-important trip to Mallorca, they host Atletico Madrid before tough trips to Athletic Club and Real Sociedad in the Basque Country, ending the season against Barcelona at Mestalla.

Valencia are desperate to avoid a first relegation in 40 years (David Ramos/Getty Images)

Alaves should be similarly worried, according to Opta’s model, facing both of the top two before the season is out, while Sevilla do not have it easy after a massive game at Levante on Wednesday.

On the flip side, Mallorca face four of their relegation rivals before the season is out, while Rayo will hope to get points on the board before their two-legged Conference League semi-final against French side Strasbourg.

Taking respective schedules, team strength and form into account, Opta’s simulations predict that Oviedo and Levante have left it too late. It forecasts a tight, three-way battle between Elche, Alaves and Sevilla to avoid that last spot in the drop zone, while Valencia are not completely safe from their first relegation in 40 years.

If the last La Liga matchday taught us anything, it is to expect the unexpected.