La Liga champions Barcelona began the new campaign with a 3-0 win over Alaves on Saturday with the help of a spectacular under-the-wall free kick from Lionel Messi, who scored twice, and a curling shot from substitute Philippe Coutinho.
Leaders Barcelona will have to wait at least another week to wrap up the La Liga title after Cristiano Ronaldo struck twice to lead second-placed Real Madrid to a 4-3 comeback success at home to Real Valladolid on Saturday.
Real Madrid will go into next weekend's La Liga El Clasico at Barcelona eight points behind their great rivals after Cristiano Ronaldo netted a hat-trick in a 5-1 comeback win at home to promoted Deportivo Coruna on Sunday.
Madrid were not at their best but moved three points clear of rivals Barcelona.
Messi stretched Barca's lead by finishing off a brilliant move with Luis Suarez in the 50th minute and the Uruguayan joined his close friend and strike partner on 15 league goals by robbing an Eibar defender and finishing inside the near post in the 68th.
Real Madrid have defied injuries to keep the pressure on leaders Barcelona and notched up over 100 La Liga goals but they now face arguably the toughest test of their title charge in an away match to Sevilla on Saturday.
Chelsea's new signing Pedro has said he took a "gamble" by leaving Spanish champions Barcelona after eight successful years, but one driven by his desire for more playing time.
Barcelona won their 26th King's Cup when two goals from Pedro and one from Lionel Messi gave them a 3-0 victory over Athletic Bilbao in coach Pep Guardiola's final match in charge on Friday.
Unbeaten La Liga leaders Barcelona ended 2012 on a high when Lionel Messi struck his 91st goal of the year in a 3-1 win at Real Valladolid while their arch-rivals Real Madrid slumped to a 3-2 defeat at Malaga.
The players of the first staff of football of the FC Barcelona made the medical examinations on Wednesday and according to the information, all have been given negative and are 'clean' of the illness.
Barcelona's bid for a fourth straight La Liga title is foundering due to their erratic away form but Tuesday's 3-1 Champions League victory at Bayer Leverkusen suggests they are unlikely to suffer the same problem in Europe.
Athletic Bilbao survived a constant state of siege to hold a weakened Barcelona to a 0-0 draw at the Nou Camp in a King's Cup last 16 first-leg match on Tuesday. La Liga leaders Barca had won 10 successive games in all competitions, scoring 31 goals in the last seven, but they ran out of ideas against their resolute Basque visitors.
The resumption of the German Bundesliga next weekend amid the COVID-19 crisis will give hope to other European leagues that they can also successfully return, according to Schalke 04 coach David Wagner.
Real Madrid will be targeting a sixth consecutive victory since the COVID-19 hiatus when they host Getafe, looking to capitalise on Barca's 2-2 draw with Atletico Madrid on Tuesday
The Polish striker will miss games against Espanyol, Atletico Madrid and Getafe when LaLiga resumes after the World Cup.
Arsenal have agreed terms with Barcelona to sell Cameroon international midfielder Alex Song to the Spanish side for 19 million euros ($23.36 million), the Premier League club said on Saturday.
Valencia turned up the heat on Atletico Madrid in the fight for third place in La Liga when a 3-0 derby victory at home to Levante on Monday lifted the Singapore-owned club to within a point of the champions with seven games left.
Here are five talking points from the weekend's action:
Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo aggravated a leg muscle injury in Saturday's 2-1 win over city rivals Atletico, the La Liga club said.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Barcelona stayed hard on the heels of La Liga leaders Real Madrid when Lionel Messi's brilliance lifted a side containing several youngsters from the club's B team to a 2-1 win at home to Real Sociedad on Saturday.
Atletico Madrid's Jackson Martinez scored his first goal for the club when he came off the bench and curled in a superb effort to seal a hard-fought 3-0 victory at Sevilla in La Liga on Sunday.
Sevilla and Real Madrid kept the pressure on leaders Barcelona with home wins in the Primera Liga on Sunday.
Cristiano Ronaldo ensured Atletico Madrid fans will have bitter memories of the last local derby at the Vicente Calderon stadium by scoring a hat-trick in a 3-0 win for La Liga leaders Real Madrid on Saturday. Ronaldo's deflected free kick put Real in charge in the 23rd minute in the first meeting of the teams since the Champions League final in May. The prolific Portuguese killed off Atletico's resistance by winning and converting a penalty in the 71st minute and capped a harrowing night for the home side by tapping in the third in the 77th.
Valencia beat leaders Barcelona 2-1 at the Mestalla to put themselves firmly in the Primera Liga title race.
Barcelona fullback Jordi Alba has recovered from flu but is still not fit enough to feature in Wednesday's Champions League Group G game at home to Spartak Moscow, the La Liga club said on Tuesday.
zidane Image: Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane. Photograph: Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images. An elated but pragmatic Zinedine Zidane has quickly turned his mind from the Champions League victory against AS Roma to Real Madrid's seemingly impossible task to catch Barcelona in La Liga. Real are getting better under Zidane, unbeaten in seven matches in all competitions after Wednesday's 2-0 win in the first leg of their last-16 tie in Rome, thanks to a brilliant Cristiano Ronaldo. But only a couple of hours earlier, Barcelona had left Real and Atletico Madrid with a tough task to overhaul them in the league race when they secured a six-point cushion with a 3-1 win at Sporting Gijon. With 14 matches to go for all the teams in La Liga, Barcelona have 60 points to Atletico's 54 and Real's 53 and are favourites to win a sixth title in eight seasons. "We are seven points behind and it will be difficult, but we are giving it everything and we are all happy," Zidane was quoted as saying on the Real website (www.realmadrid.com).
Champions Barcelona lost 2-0 at Celta Vigo while Getafe earned an important 2-0 win over Girona in their bid to secure Champions League qualification.
Barcelona were held to a 1-1 draw away to Levante in the Primera Liga.
Around 35,000 Barcelona fans went to the Nou Camp to see striker David Villa presented on Friday as the club's first signing since they won a second consecutive La Liga title last weekend.
Real Madrid closed to within three points of La Liga leaders Barcelona and Atletico Madrid at the halfway stage of the season when a Pepe header secured a laboured 1-0 win at mid-table Espanyol on Sunday.
Ronaldinho was in inspirational form as he returned to lead Barcelona to a 5-1 home victory over an unfortunate Real Betis in the Primera Liga on Saturday.
Real Madrid winger Gareth Bale answered his critics in emphatic style.
Lionel Messi netted a superb double as Barcelona recovered from a shaky start to secure a 4-1 comeback win at rain-lashed Sevilla on Sunday that lifted the champions back to the top of La Liga.
Barcelona need to avoid over-exuberance if they are to overturn a 2-0 deficit in Tuesday's Champions League clash at home to AC Milan, midfielder Cesc Fabregas said on Thursday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
The referee said in his match report he showed the card because Messi "delayed his return to his half of the pitch after the goal was scored with the intention of wasting time".
Karim Benzema gave the European champions the lead in the 20th minute with an irresistible piece of control and finish after a pinpoint pass from Luka Modric.
Barcelona conceded a surprise early goal but a Pedro double helped them fight back to secure a 4-1 victory at third-tier Cartagena in their King's Cup last 32, first leg on Friday.
Prolific Cristiano Ronaldo hit a 35th hat-trick for Real Madrid who swept aside Espanyol 6-0 in a ruthless attacking display in La Liga on Sunday.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances