Barcelona took another big stride towards a second-straight La Liga triumph when top scorer Lionel Messi struck twice in a 4-1 home win over relegation threatened Tenerife on Tuesday.
Lionel Messi has added another record against his already legendary name.
La Liga leaders Barcelona drew 0-0 at Huesca on Saturday and are nine points clear of second-placed Atletico Madrid, who cut the gap by beating Celta Vigo 2-0.
Barcelona coach Luis Enrique has given his backing to Xavi and says the veteran midfielder remains a valuable member of the squad despite having played just 45 minutes in the opening five La Liga games.
Coach Ernesto Valverde and midfielder Sergio Busquets were due to give a news conference before the training session but spoke to the media after training due to their late arrival.
Lionel Messi's double and a David Villa goal on his return form injury helped Barcelona hammer visitors Real Sociedad 5-1 to give new coach Tito Vilanova the perfect start to their La Liga campaign on Sunday.
'We will need to have a good day to get past a rival of this magnitude'
Barcelona were handed their first defeat of the season by Atletico Madrid after a 2-1 loss on Sunday.
Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu believes FIFA regulations concerning under-age player transfers needs to be revised and that current rules would have prevented Lionel Messi from joining the club.
Zinedine Zidane got off to a flying start as Real Madrid coach when Gareth Bale hit a hat-trick in a 5-0 win over Deportivo La Coruna on Saturday after a Lionel Messi treble had fired Barcelona to the top of La Liga.
Barcelona midfielder Cesc Fabregas sustained a hamstring injury during training on Saturday and will be out of action for around three weeks, the European champions said.
Lionel Messi netted two late goals as champions Barcelona thrashed Sevilla 4-0 on Saturday to stretch their advantage over second-placed Real Madrid at the top of La Liga to five points.
Real Madrid climbed back above Barcelona to the top of La Liga when Cristiano Ronaldo and Gonzalo Higuain both netted twice to seal a convincing 4-2 victory at city rivals Getafe on Thursday.
Barcelona's fading hopes of capturing a fourth consecutive La Liga crown suffered a major setback when they lost 3-2 at Osasuna on Saturday to leave Real Madrid seven points clear at the top with a game in hand.
'Will I be playing at Barca next season? It's an unknown'
A Gareth Bale header and a Cristiano Ronaldo penalty gave Real Madrid a much-needed 2-0 victory over Eibar in La Liga on Sunday, following their hammering by leaders Barcelona last weekend, and put them six points off the top of the standings.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 22nd La Liga goal of the season to set Real Madrid on their way to a laboured 2-0 win at home to Granada on Saturday that lifted them above Barcelona and Atletico Madrid to the top of the standings.
Barcelona and Atletico Madrid dropped their first points of the season on Saturday, missing the chance to equal the record for the best-ever La Liga start.
The South American trio of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez reached a scorching 108 goals for the season following the La Liga leaders' 8-0 destruction of Cordoba on Saturday but the team's defence is yet to dispel doubts
'Barcelona are super favourites for this game and tomorrow everyone is already convinced that we have to be totally focused as a whole squad'
A round-up of Saturday's action in Serie A, La Liga and Bundesliga.
Pep Guardiola finds English football 'fascinating' and his ambition is to manage a Premier League club in future, the sought-after former Barcelona coach said.
Bayer Leverkusen face what looks to be the near-impossible task of putting three goals past Barcelona at the Nou Camp on Wednesday and to do so they will need to dethrone the undisputed passing kings of Europe.
Barcelona captain Lionel Messi scored two goals and set up two more as the Catalans thrashed Real Valladolid 5-1 to move top of La Liga on Tuesday.
Images from Saturday's La Liga matches.
Cesc Fabregas and Alexis Sanchez marked their home debuts for Barcelona in La Liga with goals as the champions crushed Villarreal 5-0 in their opening match of the campaign on Monday.
Thierry Henry and Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored in the second half as Barcelona squeezed past bottom club Xerez 2-0 to go five points clear at the top of La Liga on Wednesday.
Atletico Madrid kept pace with leaders Barcelona and restored their five-point lead over third-placed city rivals Real when Diego Costa and David Villa each scored a penalty in a 2-1 win at Granada in La Liga on Thursday.
Cristiano Ronaldo netted his fifth La Liga hat-trick of the campaign as Real Madrid brushed off Pepe's 44th-minute dismissal to secure a crushing 6-2 victory at Sevilla and move back above Barcelona to the top of the standings on Saturday.
Images from the soccer matches played across Europe on Saturday.
Images from La Liga matches played on Sunday
Barcelona and Real Madrid maintained their perfect La Liga starts on Saturday, with Zlatan Ibrahimovic setting the champions on their way to a 2-0 victory at Malaga and Real winning 3-0 at home to Tenerife.
Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola has told his players they need to lift their game if they hope to catch La Liga leaders Real Madrid and secure a fourth straight Spanish title.
Barcelona will attempt to give Luis Enrique his 100th victory in his 125th game in charge of the team when they play at Athletic Bilbao in la Liga on Sunday. A former Barca player, the 46-year-old led them to a La Liga, King's Cup and Champions League treble in his first year in charge and the domestic double last season. The Catalans started the campaign with a 5-0 aggregate triumph over Sevilla in the Spanish Super Cup and a 6-2 victory over Real Betis in La Liga.
Andres Iniesta will always be a hero to Barcelona.
Henrik Larsson and Samuel Eto'o scored in Barcelona's 2-0 win at Real Sociedad
A round-up of Saturday's action in La Liga, Ligue 1 and Serie A.
Photos from the La Liga matches played on Sunday
Three goals in a devastating nine-minute spell at the start of the second half saw Barcelona to a 4-1 win over Athletic Bilbao in the King's Cup final on Wednesday and the first of three possible titles.
Barcelona surrendered lead to arch-rivals Real Madrid after they were held to a 1-1 draw at home to Real Betis.
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