'Barca are the best team around and when we play as we know how we are unstoppable'
Karim Benzema scored twice in the final few minutes to give Real Madrid a 3-1 win at Espanyol, while Barcelona breezed past Real Valladolid with a comfortable 4-0 LaLiga victory.
Images from La Liga matches played on Sunday
Barcelona thrashed Real Betis 5-1 on Wednesday to book their spot in the Copa del Rey quarter-finals.
The win increased Zinedine Zidane's side's advantage at the top of the standings to six points
Real Madrid overcame an early howler from Sergio Ramos to beat Real Sociedad 3-1 at home on an eventful Saturday at the Santiago Bernabeu, where Gareth Bale was loudly booed by his own supporters and Luka Modric returned to his very best form.
Real Madrid have enviously looked on as Barcelona claimed six La Liga titles in the last eight years, but Zinedine Zidane's side can take a huge step towards a first crown since 2012 with victory over their bitter rivals at the Nou Camp on Saturday.
Ernesto Valverde's Bilbao team punished the visitors with clinical counter-attacks, playing with the advantage of having won the first leg 1-0 in Madrid.
David Moyes's bid to resurrect his career in La Liga ended in failure when Real Sociedad sacked him following a defeat at Las Palmas which left them hovering just above the relegation places.
Real Madrid romped to a 4-1 win at tiny Eibar on Saturday, provisionally returning to the top of La Liga, despite the absence of Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo for Zinedine Zidane's side.
The draw also produced a clash between two former European champions with AC Milan facing Serbia's Red Star Belgrade while French league leaders Lille face Ajax Amsterdam in a fascinating tie.
Iker Muniain gave Athletic a deserved lead in the 32nd minute by bundling the ball home after Real failed to get back in time to defend a counterattack.
Atletico coach Simeone defends VAR for making football fairer
Ivan Toney, once Brentford's lynchpin in attack, has moved to Al-Ahli for 40 million pounds ($52.50 million).
Ajax, four-times European Cup winners who are in the knockout stages for the first time in 13 years, have enhanced their reputation as a talent factory due to the rise of homegrown Dutch players Frenkie de Jong and Matthijs de Ligt.
The Barcelona legend showed his support following the end of the World Health Worker Week, which concluded on Saturday.
David Moyes made light of his first dismissal when he leapt over a fence into the stands to watch the rest of the match and accepted crisps from a girl.
Forward Rasmus Hojlund scored twice to allow Manchester United to come back from a goal down and get a 2-1 win at six-times Czech champions Viktoria Plzen in the Europa League on Thursday.
Roundup of the matches being held across major football leagues in Europe on Sunday
Atletico Madrid made a typically aggressive start to lay the foundations for a 2-0 victory at home.
Barca's fans held up a mosaic before the game reading "Infinite Iniesta". They later revealed a banner saying "Thanks for so much" in tribute to a player who came through the club's academy and spent 16 years pulling the strings in midfield, winning nine Liga titles, four Champions Leagues and six domestic Cups.
Holders Manchester City will take on RB Leipzig, Red Star Belgrade and Young Boys in Group G.
A summary of the UEFA Champions League Group Stage action, on Wednesday.
With no fans allowed into venues and Real playing their home games at the 6,000-capacity Alfredo Di Stefano stadium while the Santiago Bernabeu is being refurbished, it will be a title race unlike any other.
The Copa del Rey semi-final draw will be made on Friday.
Images from UEFA Champions League matches played on Wednesday.
Atletico Madrid earned a 1-1 draw away to Girona in a chaotic and entertaining Copa del Rey last 16 first-leg match on Wednesday, leaving the tie finely balanced.
Metz draw at Marseille to end losing streak
IMAGRS from the soccer matches played across European leagues on Friday
Cristiano Ronaldo netted a first-half penalty as injury-depleted Real Madrid recovered from their derby defeat by Atletico Madrid at the weekend with a 3-1 win at Levante on Wednesday.
Real Madrid's stuttering season continued as they were reduced to 10 men and then slumped to an 11th La Liga defeat of the campaign by going down 3-1 at Real Sociedad.
The old format was skewed in favour of the bigger clubs, who could rest players for a first leg and swallow defeat before calling on their stars to turn the tie around in the return game.
Real also have an outstanding defence, conceding only 25 times last year, and are well covered in every position.
Real Madrid winger Gareth Bale said on Wednesday he has an extra incentive to reach a third Champions League final in four years because the title game will be played in his hometown of Cardiff. "This is the reason I came to Madrid - to play in the Champions League, to win the Champions League," the 27-year-old Bale said in an interview with UEFA.com. "To have the Champions League final in my home town is an even bigger motivation," he said.
Cristiano Ronaldo shrugged off the boos of his own supporters to fire Real Madrid to a 3-0 win over Real Sociedad on Sunday.
Real Madrid have moved to broaden their options in attack by agreeing to sign Mexico striker Javier Hernandez on loan from Manchester United for the 2014-15 season.
Real Madrid captain and goalkeeper Iker Casillas has called for a big improvement after the European champions suffered a surprise early-season setback at Real Sociedad in La Liga on Sunday.
Images from football matches played across Europe on Sunday.
'It's not like that. It's more complicated. With Bale it's always about one side against the other. But I've never had a problem with Gareth.'
Spanish soccer's 'El Clasico' encounters between Barcelona and Real Madrid will happen in December and April, two of the most anticipated games of the 2016-17 Primera Division season whose fixtures were announced on Friday. Defending champions Barca host Real on Dec. 4 at the Camp Nou. The reverse fixture will take place on April 23, at the Bernabeu stadium, the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) confirmed after the draw. As the La Liga season kicks off, Barca will begin their title defence at home to Real Betis on Aug. 21.
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