Ranking the 5 greatest individual seasons in La Liga

Spain's La Liga has been graced by some of the finest players to have played the game.

The likes of Telmo Zarra, Alfredo Di Stefano, Raul, Fernando Hierro, Ronaldo Nazario, Luis Figo and Zinedine Zidane have turned out in the Spanish top-flight. More recently, Iker Casillas, Xavi, Andres Iniesta, Sergio Ramos, Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Luis Suarez are a few notable examples.

All of these players and a few others have had impressive exploits in La Liga. On that note, let's have a look at the five most memorable individual campaigns in the history of the Spanish first division.

#5 Ronaldinho (Barcelona) - 2005-06

Ronaldinho only played five seasons in La Liga with Barcelona, but he left a lasting impression with his eye-catching performances.

After tallying 45 goal contributions (24 goals, 21 assists) in his first two campaigns in the competition, the 2002 FIFA World Cup winner took things up a notch in his third in 2005-06 as he helped Barcelona successfully defend their La Liga title.

Ronaldinho produced a dazzling brace at the home of Real Madrid, which got him a rare standing ovation from a partisan Santiago Bernabeu crowd in a game Barcelona won 3-0.

He scored ten goals and bagged seven assists in the first half of the season. To go with his exploits earlier in the year - Confederations Cup win with Brazil and a La Liga title with Barcelona - Ronaldinho won the 2005 Ballon d'Or award.

The ever-smiling Brazilian would end the season with a rich haul of 18 goals and 17 assists as Barcelona won the league title by a whopping 12 points despite losing their last two games of the season.

#4 Luis Suarez (Barcelona) - 2015-16

Luis Suarez is one of the most prolific scorers to have graced La Liga, especially in recent years.

Despite a belated start to his debut La Liga season in 2014-15, Suarez tallied an impressive tally of 16 goals and as many assists as Barcelona won their second continental treble. But the Uruguayan was only getting started.

In his next La Liga campaign, Suarez became the first player after Ronaldo and Messi to breach the 40-goal mark in a Spanish top-flight season. In 35 matches that campaign, the Uruguayan scored 40 goals and 18 assists as Barcelona successfully defended their La Liga title.

The former Liverpool striker struck six hat-tricks during the season, including three in the last five games, marking the first time in almost a decade that neither Messi or Ronaldo topped the La Liga scoring charts.

#3 Lionel Messi (Barcelona) - 2012-13

Lionel Messi, undoubtedly one of the best players to have played the game, is the all-time top-scorer in La Liga and has had several memorable campaigns in the competition.

One such campaign came in the 2012-13 La Liga season. Messi amassed 26 goals in the first half of the campaign. To go with his stellar exploits earlier in the year, the Argentine landed a record fourth-consecutive Ballon d'Or award.

The Barcelona ace did not relent in the second half of the campaign, scoring 20 goals as the Blaugrana dethroned reigning La Liga champions Real Madrid. He could have ended up with more if not for a hamstring injury that forced him to miss six of the last nine games of the season.

#2 Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid) - 2014-15

Three years after producing a 46-goal La Liga season, Cristiano Ronaldo was at it again, repeating the feat in 2014-15 despite playing four fewer games than he did in 2011-12.

Ronaldo amassed 26 goals in the first half of the season, including four hat-tricks. His three-goal haul against Celta Vigo made him the first player in La Liga history to register 23 hat-tricks. In the process, he brought up his 200th goal in the Spanish top-flight as Real Madrid won their 18th game in all competitions.

The Portuguese ace was unrelenting in the second half of the season too, netting four more hat-tricks including a stunning five-goal haul against Granada. Ronaldo ended the season with 46 goals, scoring three hat-tricks in his last four games, as Real Madrid fell short by two points in a titanic title race.

Both the Merengues and Barcelona racked up 30 wins apiece. But it was the Blaugrana who won their fifth La Liga title in seven years, as Ronaldo's tally of 46 goals and 17 assists eventually went in vain.

#1 Lionel Messi - 2011-12

Lionel Messi produced one of the all-time great seasons in the history of top-flight football in 2011-12. The Argentine magician scored a staggering 50 La Liga goals, tallying an unbelievable 73 for the season in all competition while also racking up 34 assists.

There was little inkling of what was in store as Messi scored 'only' 19 goals in the first half of the season. But the Argentine was unstoppable in the second half of the campaign, amassing a monstrous 31 goals and registering five hat-tricks.

Crucially, Messi drew a rare blank in the 2-1 home defeat to Real Madrid and another in the last game of the season. That meant despite Messi's stellar exploits - 50 goals and 20 assists - the 2011-12 La Liga title went to Madrid, for whom Ronaldo registered a 46-goal campaign.

About the author

Bhargav is a veteran sports journalist and editor at Sportskeeda, with a rich professional experience of 17 years, working for the likes of Siemens and Bombay Dyeing. An avid football and tennis follower for over three decades, Bhargav uses his vast knowledge and experience, attention to detail, an unbiased yet interesting writing style, and thorough research to craft insightful articles, which have raked in over 20 million reads so far.

Bhargav supports Italy at national level, a team steeped in tradition and history according to him. He still harbors the heartbreak from the Azzurri’s 1994 FIFA World Cup final defeat against Brazil, and protagonist-turned-antagonist from the game, ‘Divine Ponytail’ Roberto Baggio is his all-time favorite player. His favorite manager is Marcelo Lippi, who ended Italy’s 24-year wait for the World Cup trophy, winning it in 2006.

Outside Europe’s top five leagues, he follows the MLS following Lionel Messi’s move in 2023 but favors Cristiano Ronaldo in the G.O.A.T. debate. During his free time, Bhargav enjoys driving off to new places and singing.

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Edited by Sai Krishna