Madrid on brink of title
Inch closer to the La Liga title as they are four points ahead of Barcelona
Real Madrid are just one win away from laying their hands on the La Liga trophy, after they held off a secondhalf comeback from Granada to win 2-1 and move four points clear of Barcelona.
Real Madrid need one victory to secure La Liga after they held off a second-half comeback from Granada on Monday to win 2-1 and move four points clear of Barcelona.
With two games left, Madrid will be crowned champions if they beat Villarreal at home on Thursday regardless of how Barca fare at the Camp Nou against Osasuna.
But they were made to sweat by a Granada team that are gunning for Europe and have been arguably the division's surprise of the season after being promoted from second tier last year.
Ferland Mendy and Karim Benzema looked to have set Madrid on course for a comfortable win at Los Carmenes but Granada were transformed after the break and Darwin Machis's 50th-minute strike gave them hope.
An increasingly nervous Madrid were clinging on by the end and needed Sergio Ramos to clear one shot off the line as Zinedine Zidane's side dug in for a ninth consecutive victory.
"Our vision when we start every season is to win the league," said Zidane. "There are two games left. We are close but we're not there yet."
When the final whistle blew, Zidane roared with relief and Ramos clenched his fists after coming through their toughest test since the restart.
If Madrid slip up against Villarreal, they will still have a second chance on Sunday when they finish at Leganes while Barcelona visit Alaves.