Sergio Ramos made amends for his untimely own goal last week at Sevilla by scoring twice as Real Madrid bounced back from two successive defeats by beating Malaga 2-1 on Saturday to go four points clear at the top of La Liga.
Alexis Sanchez had equalised for the visitors, scoring on the rebound after Manuel Neuer saved his 30th-minute penalty but the Gunners suffered when captain Laurent Koscielny limped off injured to leave the defence exposed.
Karim Benzema came off the bench to score 13 minutes from time and ruin any chance of a dream result for resilient Ludogorets as holders Real Madrid carved out a patchy 2-1 win in Wednesday's Champions League Group B match.
Here are five talking points from the weekend in La Liga:
When Swedish champions Malmo take on mighty Real Madrid on Wednesday they do so knowing they would probably have to sell their entire squad just to be able to afford a single player from the bench of the Spanish giants.
Al Hilal, managed by Portuguese coach Jorge Jesus, play Al Fayha on Saturday with Neymar expected to wear the number 10 shirt.
A summary of the results of the major European football league matches on the weekend.
The three-horse race for the La Liga title tightened on Sunday when leaders Real Madrid drew 2-2 at city rivals Atletico and Barcelona won 4-1 at home to Almeria.
While Gareth Bale is fully expected to regain his place in the Real Madrid side when he returns from injury, team mate Isco is making the most of his chance to prove his worth on the pitch.
Not content with setting a record of 17 goals for one edition of the Champions League last season, Cristiano Ronaldo is already well on the way towards breaking Lionel Messi's La Liga best haul of 50 goals in one campaign.
Real Madrid and Barcelona pulled two points clear in La Liga when Cristiano Ronaldo set a club scoring record in Real's 3-0 stroll against Levante and Neymar hit four as Barca beat Rayo Vallecano 5-2 on Saturday.
"The intention is to sell him, but there's no offers forthcoming," read the front page of Marca, accompanied by a picture of the 29-year-old Bale looking sullen.
Rediff.com looks at the five best goals from the concluding round in the league stage.
Champions Barcelona moved five points clear at the top of La Liga with a 2-1 win at Getafe, while Real Madrid fell to a 2-0 defeat by Real Sociedad.
Coach Zinedine Zidane learned the lessons of predecessor Rafael Benitez's disastrous tactics in the last encounter and employed defensive midfielder Casemiro in favour of more attack-minded players, opting instead to sit and wait for Barcelona.
Real Madrid edged past Sporting Lisbon 2-1, while Juventus came from behind to secure a 3-1 win at Sevilla and Borussia Dortmund crushed Legia Warsaw 8-4 to set a record for the most goals scored in a Champions League match.
Vietto slotted the ball home with seven minutes to go after Karim Benzema had given visitors Real the lead early on.
Federico Valverde finished off a stunning move in extra time to give Real Madrid a 3-2 victory over arch-rivals Barcelona
Luis Suarez scored a hat-trick and Lionel Messi bagged a brace as Barcelona thrashed bottom side Cordoba 8-0 on Saturday to move a step closer to their fifth La Liga title in seven years.
Real Madrid failed to win their Champions League group for the first time in four years when a late goal by substitute Marco Reus allowed Borussia Dortmund to equalise and clinch a 2-2 draw.
Gareth Bale proved his worth to Real Madrid by delivering the Champions League trophy with a sensational two goals after coming off the bench in the 3-1 win
Atletico Madrid maintained a two-point lead in La Liga with a 3-0 victory at Las Palmas and Barcelona and Real Madrid stayed hard on their heels with thumping wins over Athletic Bilbao and Sporting Gijon on Sunday.
Barcelona beat local rivals Espanyol 2-0 in the Catalan derby on Saturday to maintain their 10 point lead at the top of La Liga, while Real Madrid scraped a 3-2 win against bottom side Huesca on Sunday.
The three teams with 100 percent records in this season's Champions League can secure their places in the knockout stage this week with two games to spare.
Al-Nassr are one of 40 clubs from 20 leagues across the confederation drawn in 10 groups to face one another from Monday, with only the winners guaranteed to advance to the knockout rounds in the quest for the top prize of US$4 million.
Rediff.com gives you a pictorial rewind of all the excitement that unfolded in the sporting world in the week gone by...
News of all that transpired on and off the football field.
Liverpool goalkeeper Loris Karius accepted the blame for his team's 3-1 defeat to Real Madrid in the Champions League final in which he made two dreadful errors that both led to goals. The German gifted Real their opening goal in the 51st minute when, hurrying to start an attack, he threw the ball out in front of Real striker Karim Benzema, who stuck his leg out and turned the ball into the net.
Celta Vigo thrashed Barcelona 4-1 on Wednesday with Iago Aspas hitting a double.
Arsenal manager Unai Emery was pleased with his team's first away clean sheet of the season.
Lionel Messi celebrated his sixth Ballon D'Or award with a brilliant hat-trick as Barcelona moved back top of La Liga with an emphatic 5-2 victory over Real Mallorca.
Images from the Champions League matches played on Tuesday
Toni Kroos netted his first for Real Madrid and was hailed as the best player on the pitch by his coach as the hosts tore apart Rayo Vallecano 5-1 in La Liga on Saturday to extend their winning streak to 13 games.
La Liga leaders Barcelona moved 10 points clear with a 4-1 win at Real Betis on Sunday after second place Atletico Madrid slipped up at Athletic Bilbao on Saturday in a 2-0 defeat.
Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers should explain to the fans his team selection against Real Madrid in Tuesday's Champions League Group B match, UEFA president Michel Platini said on Wednesday.
Real Madrid's early-season woes deepened when they lost 2-1 at home to La Liga champions Atletico Madrid, while substitute Neymar struck twice in Barcelona's 2-0 win against visiting Athletic Bilbao on Saturday.
Juventus substitute Cristiano Ronaldo was denied a stoppage-time winner by VAR as Udinese came from two goals down to snatch a 2-2 draw in their thrilling Serie A season opener on Sunday.
Images from the Champions League matches played on Wednesday
Midfielder Dani Ceballos added: "It looks like us changing our coach worked. We have recovered some sensations we had lost and we have got the three points. Now our objective is to win all the games left and finish the season as well as possible."
Javier Hernandez's late strike kept Real Madrid on course for a record-extending 11th European Cup crown with a 1-0 win over 10-man Atletico Madrid in a tense quarter-final at the Bernebau on Wednesday.
