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 will join the complaint filed on Friday by Spanish prosecutors against Barcelona and two of the LaLiga club's ex-presidents over alleged payments to a company owned by a senior refereeing official to influence match results.
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.
"We are really pleased and we just have to enjoy it," Celta defender Gustavo Cabral told Spanish television.
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.
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.
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.
Casemiro headed an 89th minute winner to earn Real Madrid a barely deserved 2-1 victory at Las Palmas in La Liga on Sunday as they closed the gap on second-placed Atletico Madrid to four points.
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.
The Polish striker will miss games against Espanyol, Atletico Madrid and Getafe when LaLiga resumes after the World Cup.
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.
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.
Cristiano Ronaldo kept up his rich La Liga scoring form as Real Madrid beat Villarreal 2-0 on Saturday to move up to fourth.
Real Madrid conceded a late freekick to draw for the second time in four days as they were held 1-1 at struggling Villarreal, cutting their lead at the top of La Liga cut to six points on Wednesday.
Barcelona failed to capitalise on Real Madrid dropping points against Villarreal as the La Liga champions were held to a 1-1 draw at home to Atletico Madrid on Wednesday, while talisman Lionel Messi limped off with a groin injury.
Benzema enjoyed a stellar campaign with Real Madrid last season, scoring 44 goals in 46 games in all competitions as he inspired them to a La Liga and Champions League double.
Sevilla's devastating display to dispatch Malaga 4-1 on Saturday put them in their highest league position after 16 games for a decade and left little doubt that hiring coach Jorge Sampaoli to succeed serial winner Unai Emery was the right choice.
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.
Barcelona slipped five points behind La Liga leaders Real Madrid when Alvaro Vazquez netted a shock late equaliser to snatch a 1-1 draw for Espanyol in the Catalan derby on Sunday.
Real Madrid climbed back above Barcelona to the top of La Liga when goals from former Liverpool pair Xabi Alonso and Alvaro Arbeloa helped them to a stirring 3-2 comeback win over Atletico Madrid on Sunday.
Rafael van der Vaart admitted to handling the ball in the lead up to Real Madrid's opening goal in their 3-1 victory over Sporting Gijon in La Liga on Saturday.
'Robert is an incredible player and he won everything with us. We are incredibly grateful to him.'
Barca must beat Villareal on the weekend if they are to stand a chance of overhauling Real in the run in.
A late double from Cristiano Ronaldo put some gloss on a stuttering performance from Real Madrid as they beat Celta Vigo 3-0 to cut the gap at the top of La Liga to five points.
Atletico Madrid made a typically aggressive start to lay the foundations for a 2-0 victory at home.
Poland and Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski hailed Barcelona coach Xavi as the main reason for his move to the La Liga club.
Images from the La Liga matches played across Spain on Saturday.
Barcelona's 2-1 loss at Ajax Amsterdam in the Champions League last week was down to a lack of intensity while Sunday's 1-0 reverse at Athletic Bilbao in La Liga exposed their relative physical frailty.
Barcelona followed up Saturday's win over Real Madrid with another victory when Alexis Sanchez set the champions on their way to a 3-0 success at Celta Vigo on Tuesday that put them four points clear at the top of La Liga.
Barcelona manager Luis Enrique believes his team deserves to win "the best league in Europe" as they aim to clinch La Liga in a potentially thrilling climax to the Spanish season on Saturday.
Jaume Costa atoned for giving away a first-half penalty when his strike five minutes from time rescued Villarreal a 1-1 draw against Eibar that put them fourth in La Liga on Sunday.
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.
Stuttering Spanish champions Real Madrid returned to winning ways in La Liga but were well short of their scintillating best in a laboured 2-0 victory at lowly city rivals Rayo Vallecano on Monday.
Barcelona's Xavi crashed a shot into the top corner three minutes from the end and Lionel Messi forced a stoppage-time own goal as the hosts overcame stubborn Granada 2-0 to maintain their perfect La Liga start on Saturday.
Barcelona coach Luis Enrique said on Friday he trusted his team to handle the occasion of this weekend's season finale at lowly Granada, where a win would guarantee their 24th La Liga title.
Barcelona sacked coach Ronald Koeman after Wednesday's 1-0 LaLiga defeat at Rayo Vallecano, the Catalan club said on Wednesday.
The 35-year-old also paid tribute to Messi, who played for Real's arch-rivals Barcelona.
In a big blow to Real Madrid's title hopes, Real Betis held them to a goalless draw in their La Liga encounter on Sunday.
Barcelona will look to take a big step towards their first La Liga title in four years, when they take on Real Madrid this weekend.
Barcelona bounced back from their painful Clasico loss in style as they cruised to a 3-0 home LaLiga win over Villarreal with a brace from Robert Lewandowski on Thursday.
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