Barcelona's Joao Felix scored in the first half to secure a hard-fought 1-0 home win against his valiant parent club Atletico Madrid in a compelling LaLiga clash on Sunday.
A round-up of Sunday's matches in LaLiga, Ligue 1 and Serie A
Alexis Sanchez hit a hat-trick as Barcelona swept aside Elche 4-0 to return to the top of La Liga on goal difference ahead of Atletico Madrid on Sunday.
Xavi celebrated setting a club record for La Liga appearances when he netted a superb free kick to give an otherwise listless Barcelona a 1-0 win at Granada on Tuesday in a scrappy game in which the home side finished with nine men.
A Xavi free kick and an exquisite lob from Lionel Messi fired Barcelona to a 2-0 win at Sevilla that cut Real Madrid's lead at the top of La Liga back to seven points on Saturday.
Lionel Messi made a rousing debut for Major League Soccer's Inter Miami as he scored a stoppage-time winner to beat Liga MX's Cruz Azul 2-1 on Friday in their Leagues Cup opener in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Having absorbed the body blow of losing striker Radamel Falcao in the close season, Atletico Madrid have emerged as genuine contenders to break the title stranglehold of Real Madrid and Barcelona.
A Cristiano Ronaldo header set Real Madrid on their way to a 4-0 win at home to 10-man Racing Santander on Saturday that stretched their advantage over second-placed Barcelona at the top of La Liga to 13 points.
Gareth Bale marked his return to action after a long injury layoff by sealing a 2-0 victory for Real Madrid over Espanyol on Saturday to provisionally stretch Zinedine Zidane's side's lead at the top of La Liga to three points.
Here are five talking points from the weekend's action:
Sevilla maintained their incredible record in the competition after an otherwise difficult season.
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Real Madrid took full advantage of Barcelona's shock defeat at Real Valladolid with a 3-0 home win over 10-man Levante on Sunday that put Carlo Ancelotti's in-form side three points clear at the top of La Liga.
Atletico Madrid surrendered top spot in La Liga to Barcelona when they were held to a 0-0 draw at home to 10-man Sevilla in a fiercely contested La Liga clash on Sunday.
The ICC is unlikely to take any action on Pakistan Cricket Board's complaint for alleged boorish crowd behaviour during their World Cup game against India in Ahmedabad on October 14,
Lionel Messi kept Barcelona on top of La Liga with a hat-trick in a 5-0 win at Tenerife on Sunday and Real Madrid had kept up the pressure with a 2-0 home win over Real Mallorca.
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.
Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o finished with 26 goals as he scored in his side's 3-1 defeat at Athletic Bilbao.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored a hat-trick and passed the landmark of 300 club goals as Real Madrid put a turbulent week behind them with a 4-0 win at home to Getafe in La Liga on Sunday to close to within four points of second-placed Atletico Madrid.
Re-signed by Atletico, the Frenchman to stay at the club till 2026.
A bullet header from Nicolas Otamendi put Valencia on course for a 3-1 victory over Eibar in La Liga on Sunday that boosted their hopes of claiming a Champions League place.
Real Madrid maintained their pursuit for the title by defeating Malaga 3-1 late on Saturday.
La Liga players dominate this year's Best Player in Europe shortlist, announced by the continent's governing body UEFA on Monday, with seven of the top 10 contenders for the prestigious award currently plying their trade in Spain.
Karim Benzema struck twice as Real Madrid went to the top of La Liga with a 4-2 win over Villarreal on Saturday while midfielder Verza's double gave Almeria a shock 2-0 victory over Atletico Madrid.
Barcelona, Las Palmas match postponed over Catalan referendum
La Liga leaders Real Madrid dropped points at home for only the second time this season.
Harry Kane scored twice in his first league appearance in front of a home crowd to steer champions Bayern Munich to a 3-1 victory over Augsburg.
Barcelona's advantage over Real Madrid at the top of La Liga was cut to five points when they surrendered the lead and were held to a 1-1 draw in a thrilling clash at battling Sevilla on Sunday.
Real Madrid tightened their grip on top spot by beating Alaves 3-0 at home in La Liga on Sunday to provisionally move five points ahead of nearest challengers Barcelona despite coach Zinedine Zidane making a string of changes in defence.
Barca dominated possession and Luis Suarez had several early chances but it was Villarreal who took the lead with Denis Cheryshev redirecting a Mario Gaspar shot past keeper Claudio Bravo on the half hour.
Real Madrid have reluctantly agreed to play their La Liga match at Rayo Vallecano at 1745 GMT on Monday, a day after the game was abandoned because of alleged lighting sabotage at Rayo's Estadio de Vallecas stadium.
In other matches, super-sub Messi helped Barca romp past Atletico
Rampant unbeaten leaders Barcelona ended the first half of the La Liga season with a record 55 of a possible 57 points when Lionel Messi scored one goal and had a hand in two more in a 3-1 win at Malaga on Sunday.
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.
Chelsea won their first competitive match under coach Mauricio Pochettino with a 3-0 home victory over Premier League new boys Luton Town.
Beat Real Madrid's unbeaten run in the 1988-89 season, and thump Rayo Vallecano 5-1
Barcelona forward Lionel Messi set a La Liga record of 253 goals when he grabbed a hat-trick in Saturday's 5-1 win at home to Sevilla, the latest milestone for the four-times World Player of the Year.
"We are really pleased and we just have to enjoy it," Celta defender Gustavo Cabral told Spanish television.
Champions Barcelona suffered a humiliating 2-0 home defeat to Hercules on Saturday when Nelson Valdez struck twice to give the tiny promoted club a shock La Liga victory at a stunned Nou Camp stadium.
Lionel Messi wasted little time in finding his stride as he struck twice to lead 10-man Barcelona to a 3-0 home win over Elche and hand new coach Luis Enrique a happy start to the La Liga season on Sunday.
Diego Costa scored twice as Atletico Madrid beat Valencia 3-0 to maintain their winning home run this season and keep pace with Barcelona at the top of the La Liga table.
