Even Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger admitted the Premier League title was heading to Stamford Bridge this season, but the outlook on the continent is far less clear.
Barcelona lead Real Madrid by two points in La Liga with five games remaining, and although last season's final-day victory for Atletico Madrid will be difficult to match for drama, the heavyweight plot is set up nicely for the remaining four weeks.
Here, we guide you on what to look out for before the season finale at the top and bottom.
Real Madrid sit two points behind Barcelona with five games remaining.
Both Luis Enrique and Carlo Ancelotti said March's Clasico would not decide the title, but that insistence is yet to hold up.
After five straight Real league wins since the 2-1 defeat, the Clasico has not produced the Madrid derailment it promised, but the fixture run-in suggests the next four weeks could be an eye for an eye contest.
Matchdays 35 and 37 stand out; Real travelling to Sevilla, who are battling for a Champions League spot while juggling the Europa League, and Barca going to the Calderon to face Atletico, whose boss Diego Simeone will not pass the trophy on without a fight.
Barcelona's 2-1 win in El Clasico in March could be telling
Check out the fixtures of remaining matches:
Matchday 34 - Barcelona v Getafe (currently 13th); Real Madrid v Almeria (currently 17th)
Matchday 35 - Cordoba (20th) vBarcelona; Sevilla (4th) v Real Madrid
Matchday 36 - Barcelona v Real Sociedad (12th); Real Madrid v Valencia (5th)
Matchday 37 - Atletico Madrid (3rd) vBarcelona; Espanyol (10th) v Real Madrid
Matchday 38 - Barcelona v Deportivo (18th); Real Madrid v Getafe (13th)
After a relentless first half to the season, the loss of Luka Modric and James Rodriguez in February coincided with a loss of form at Real. Rodriguez has returned without complications, but Modric's next four weeks are up in the air.
He has missed the last two games, and despite Ancelotti predicting a return for the second leg of the Champions League semi-final clash with Juventus on May 13, the feeling in Madrid is that a fully-fit Modric since September would have them in pole.
Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema have played 726 more minutes than Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez this term, despite Barcelona reaching the Copa del Rey final, adding fuel to the argument in Madrid that Ancelotti is overplaying his star men.
Luis Enrique's Barca have been in superb form since the winter break
The Italian's future itself is still insecure, and even a La Liga title win may not be enough for a board still desperate to prove its force in the Champions League after a decade of underachieving.
Since the defeat at Real Sociedad on their return from the winter break - simply coined 'Anoeta' after Sociedad's stadium by the Spanish press - Barca have taken 43 points out of a possible 48, quickly turning talk of Enrique's unknown future into talk of an unprecedented second treble in seven years.
The 2-2 draw at Sevilla was a shock to the system after cruising at 2-0, but the four wins since, against PSG home and away, Valencia and city rivals Espanyol, have extinguished any talk of a slip.
The relatively unchanged front three of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez, the scorers of 24 of their last 29 league goals, has got them to the summit, and will no doubt be to thank if they are still there at close of play on May 24.
Javier Hernandez's two goals helped Real to a 4-2 win at Celta Vigo
But Javier Hernandez's emergence from the bench at Real has already handed them a win at Celta and passage to the Champions League semi-final, and remember, the Mexican is used to a title race.
His goals earned Manchester United 16 points in their 2010/11 title-winning campaign, and 10 points in their 2012/13 success. Will he stay in the team when Benzema returns?
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