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Now that the Liga is underway, I decided to poll all of our writers and editors here at MM and coerce them into sticking their necks out on predictions for this exciting season of soccer we have ahead of us. Feel free to leave your own thoughts and predictions in the comments section, and, of course, to mock us relentlessly when we're hilariously wrong at the end of the year.
I asked them to predict the following metrics for this season:
1. The top six teams in the La Liga table at the end of the season, in order
2. The three teams that will be relegated at the end of the season, in order
3. The winners of the Copa del Rey
4. The winners of the UEFA Champions League
5. The winners of the UEFA Europa League
6. The winner of the Ballon d'Or
7. The winner of the Pichichi award for top scorer in Spain
8. The winner of the Zamora Trophy for the goalkeeper with the best goals per game statistic
9. The player of the season
10. The young player of the season (under 21)
11. The manager of the season
12. The first manager to be fired in Spain
13. The best signing of the season in Spain
14. The worst signing of the season in Spain
Gabe Lezra
Top Six: 1. Barcelona; 2. Real Madrid; 3. Valencia; 4. Atlético Madrid; 5. Osasuna; 6. Sevilla
Relegation Zone: 18. Granada; 19. Celta; 20. Zaragoza
Copa del Rey: Real Madrid
Champions League: Real Madrid
Europa League: Napoli
Ballon d'Or: Lionel Messi (Barcelona)
Pichichi: Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)
Zamora: Victor Valdés (Barcelona)
Player of the season: Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)
Young player of the season: Iker Muniain (Athletic Bilbao)
Manager of the season: José Mourinho (Real Madrid)
First manager to be fired: Manolo Jimenez (Zaragoza)
Best signing: Santi Cazorla (Arsenal) [not strictly within the rules, but I'll allow it. -Ed.]
Worst signing: Alex Song (Barcelona)
Josh Zeitlin
Top Six: 1. Real Madrid; 2. Barcelona; 3. Valencia; 4. Atlético Madrid; 5. Athletic Bilbao; 6. Levante
Relegation Zone: 18. Rayo Vallecano; 19. Granada; 20. Celta
Copa del Rey: Barcelona
Champions League: Real Madrid
Europa League: Tottenham Hotspur
Ballon d'Or: Cristiano Ronaldo
Pichichi: Cristiano Ronaldo
Zamora: Victor Valdés
Player of the season: Cristiano Ronaldo
Young player of the season: Iker Muniain
Manager of the season: José Mourinho
First manager to be fired: Manuel Pellegrini (Málaga)
Best signing: Jordi Alba (Barcelona)
Worst signing: Alex Song
Lucas Navarrete
Top Six: 1. Barcelona; 2. Real Madrid; 3. Atlético Madrid; 4. Valencia; 5. Sevilla; 6. Espanyol
Relegation Zone: 18. Real Betis; 19. Valladolid; 20. Granada
Copa del Rey: Barcelona
Champions League: Real Madrid
Europa League: Napoli
Ballon d'Or: Lionel Messi
Pichichi: Lionel Messi
Zamora: Victor Valdés
Player of the season: Cristiano Ronaldo
Young player of the season: Iker Muniain
Manager of the season: Diego Simeone (Atlético Madrid)
First manager to be fired: Marcelo Bielsa (Athletic Bilbao)
Best signing: Andrés Guardado (Valencia)
Worst signing: Jordi Alba
Dennis J. Seese
Top Six: 1. Real Madrid; 2. Barcelona; 3. Atlético Madrid; 4. Valencia; 5. Mallorca; 6. Athletic Bilbao
Relegation Zone: 18. Rayo Vallecano; 19. Celta; 20. Valladolid
Copa del Rey: Barcelona
Champions League: Real Madrid
Europa League: Newcastle United
Ballon d'Or: Cristiano Ronaldo
Pichichi: Lionel Messi
Zamora: Iker Casillas
Player of the season: Mesut Özil (Real Madrid)
Young player of the season: Iker Muniain
Manager of the season: José Mourinho
First manager to be fired: Manuel Pellegrini
Best signing: Jordi Alba
Worst signing: Wakaso (Espanyol)
Kousha Azimi
Top Six: 1. Real Madrid; 2. Barcelona; 3. Valencia; 4. Athletic Bilbao; 5. Málaga; 6. Atlético Madrid
Relegation Zone: 18. Granada; 19. Zaragoza; 20. Celta
Copa del Rey: Barcelona
Champions League: Real Madrid
Europa League: Atlético Madrid
Ballon d'Or: Cristiano Ronaldo
Pichichi: Lionel Messi
Zamora: Victor Valdés
Player of the season: Lionel Messi
Young player of the season: Álvaro Morata (Real Madrid)
Manager of the season: José Mourinho
First manager to be fired: Mauricio Pellegrino (Valencia)
Best signing: Jordi Alba
Worst signing: Carlos Vela (Real Sociedad)
Jared Dublin
Top Six: 1. Real Madrid; 2. Barcelona; 3. Valencia; 4. Atlético Madrid; 5. Athletic Bilbao; 6. Málaga
Relegation Zone: 18. Real Betis; 19. Valladolid; 20. Celta
Copa del Rey: Barcelona
Champions League: Real Madrid
Europa League: Atlético Madrid
Ballon d'Or: Cristiano Ronaldo
Pichichi: Lionel Messi
Zamora: Victor Valdés
Player of the season: Cristiano Ronaldo
Young player of the season: Isco (Málaga)
Manager of the season: José Mourinho
First manager to be fired: Luis Garcia (Getafe)
Best signing: Andrés Guardado
Worst signing: Joan Capdevila (Espanyol)
Laila Ujayli
Top Six: 1. Real Madrid; 2. Barcelona; 3. Valencia; 4. Atlético Madrid; 5. Sevilla; 6. Athletic Bilbao
Relegation Zone: 18. Rayo Vallecano; 19. Valladolid; 20. Celta
Copa del Rey: Barcelona
Champions League: Real Madrid
Europa League: Napoli
Ballon d'Or: Lionel Messi
Pichichi: Lionel Messi
Zamora: Victor Valdés
Player of the season: Cristiano Ronaldo
Young player of the season: Iker Muniain
Manager of the season: José Mourinho
First manager to be fired: Manolo Jiménez (Zaragoza)
Best signing: João Pereira (Valencia)
Worst signing: Alex Song
Ireland26
Top Six: 1. Real Madrid; 2. Barcelona; 3. Valencia; 4. Deportivo La Coruña; 5. Athletic Bilbao; 6. Sevilla
Relegation Zone: 18. Rayo Vallecano; 19. Málaga; 20. Valladolid
Copa del Rey: Real Madrid
Champions League: Real Madrid
Europa League: Schalke
Ballon d'Or: Cristiano Ronaldo
Pichichi: Lionel Messi
Zamora: Victor Valdés
Player of the season: Ángel di María (Real Madrid)
Young player of the season: Fabrice Olinga (Málaga)
Manager of the season: José Mourinho
First manager to be fired: Diego Simeone
Best signing: Jordi Alba
Worst signing: Fernando Gago (Valencia)