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MADRID, May 22-- The Spanish Liga Santander came to a close on Sunday evening with Real Madrid proclaimed as Champions for the first time since 2017. Here are a few things we learned from the 2016-2017 campaign. 1) Firepower is everything. Although Real Madrid are deserving champions, it is also fair to say that both Zinedine Zidane's men and second place FC Barcelona put in several mediocre performances over the season. However, what separates the big two sides in Spain from everyone else is the capacity of their forward to score goals out of virtually nothing. Many times Madrid appeared to be under pressure, only for a goal from Ronaldo, Bale, Benzema or Alvaro Morata to turn the tide in an instant, likewise Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar, time after time pulled Barca out of the mire in an under-par display. Compare that with Sevilla, who for much of the season played football as good, if not better than the top-two, but whose top striker Wassim Ben Yedder ended up with just 11 goals. In football finishing power is everything. 2) A deep squad is a huge help At last Real Madrid have learned after seasons of frustration is the need to have a deep squad to allow the coach to rest key players at vital moments of the season. Cristiano Ronaldo's excellent end of season form came because Zidane was able to rest him at various points from March onwards and with players such as Alvaro Morata, Marco Asensio, Lucas Vazquez and Mateo Kovacic, he was at time able to rotate virtually his entire squad with no dip in performances. | 
