Kaka came off the bench after six weeks out injured and produced a clinical finish from Cristiano Ronaldo's assist to keep Real Madrid hot on the heels of leaders Barcelona in La Liga on Saturday. After Barca's nervy 3-1 win at home to basement side Xerez in the earlier kickoff, Brazil's World Cup-bound playmaker Kaka struck eight minutes from time to fire Real to a nail-biting 2-1 victory at 10-man Real Zaragoza.
'Barca are the best team around and when we play as we know how we are unstoppable'
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.
Real Madrid became La Liga champions for the first time since 2012 on Sunday with a 2-0 win at Malaga, denying arch-rivals Barcelona three consecutive league titles.
Barca said the move was part of their efforts to bring soccer and music together.
Barcelona forwards Lionel Messi, Philippe Coutinho and Luis Suarez combined to devastating effect to hammer Girona 6-1 on Saturday as they went 10 points clear at the top of La Liga and set a club record of 32 games unbeaten in the league.
Griezmann special earns Atletico 1-1 draw at Sevilla
On the eve of the big game, the Malian footballer tell Rediff.com's Norma Godinho why Real Madrid are favourites and what is plaguing Barcelona this season.
Sevilla became surprise Liga leaders on Sunday after beating visiting Celta Viga 2-1 while champions Barcelona drew 1-1 at Valencia thanks to another Lionel Messi strike but are still without a victory in their last four league games.
Real Madrid are comfortably perched on top of the La Liga standings with 66 points while Barca are now third on 54 points with a game in hand, three points behind second-placed Sevilla.
Real Madrid trimmed Barcelona's lead at the top of La Liga to one point when they recovered from conceding an early goal to secure a stirring 3-1 comeback win in the 'Clasico' on Saturday.
A solo goal by the Brazilian striker and some outstanding goalkeeping from Iker Casillas earned Real Madrid a 1-1 draw with leaders Barcelona in the Spanish league.
Real Madrid inflicted a second painful defeat on stuttering Barcelona in five days when Sergio Ramos nodded a late winner in a 2-1 success in La Liga on Saturday.
Real Madrid and Barcelona were made to work hard before grinding out wins in La Liga at the weekend while Inter Milan scored a surprise derby victory over AC Milan in Serie A.
Barcelona thrashed Real Betis 5-1 on Wednesday to book their spot in the Copa del Rey quarter-finals.
With Barca enjoying a nine-point cushion at the top of the Primera Liga and only eight games left, even a draw would leave Real facing their second trophyless season in a row.
David Villa struck twice to lead Barcelona to a 5-0 rout of Real Madrid on Monday with a scintillating performance which put the champions two points clear of their arch-rivals at the top of the Spanish La Liga.
Barcelona made a brisk start to the season with new coach Luis Enrique at the helm in place of Gerardo Martino and a host of additions to the squad, including midfielder Ivan Rakitic and goalkeeper Claudio Bravo.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic came off the bench to volley 10-man Barcelona to a 1-0 home victory over Real Madrid on Sunday which put them back on top of La Liga.
PSG's Champions League tie with Newcastle is like a final, says Luis Enrique
Gonzalo Higuain bagged a remarkable third hat-trick in two weeks to steer Real Madrid to a 4-1 win over Real Betis on Saturday while Lionel Messi's double kept Barcelona top of La Liga with a 3-0 victory over Racing Santander.
Barca will now visit seventh-placed Osasuna on Saturday before hosting Young Boys in the Champions League next week, when they will look to rebound following a 2-1 loss in their opening match at Monaco.
Atletico Madrid have a chance to pile more King's Cup misery on neighbours Real after eliminating Athletic Bilbao on Wednesday to set up a last-four clash against the bitter city rivals they beat in last year's final.
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.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored twice as a rejuvenated Barcelona gave a football masterclass to inflict a humiliating 4-0 defeat on rivals Real Madrid on Sunday.
Real Madrid's 10-point lead over Barcelona at the top of La Liga should be more than enough to secure a first title since 2008.
Karim Benzema scored twice in the final few minutes to give Real Madrid a 3-1 win at Espanyol, while Barcelona breezed past Real Valladolid with a comfortable 4-0 LaLiga victory.
Real Madrid's stuttering start to La Liga continued when they lost 1-0 at Sevilla to slip eight points behind leaders Barcelona who were 4-1 victors at Getafe earlier on Saturday.
Lionel Messi's sublime double lifted Barcelona to a 2-0 win over bitter rivals Real Madrid and lit up an acrimonious Champions League semi-final first leg in which the hosts finished with 10 men and had coach Jose Mourinho sent off.
An insatiable Lionel Messi hit a hat-trick as Barcelona hammered Espanyol 5-0 in a local derby on Saturday to make it three wins from three and take full advantage after Liga champions Real Madrid were held to a 1-1 draw at home to Levante.
The first legs of the ties will take place on February 16, with the return match a week later on February 23.
Real Madrid stayed hard on the heels of leaders Barcelona when in-form striker Karim Benzema scored to set them on their way to a 2-1 win at battling city rivals Atletico in La Liga on Saturday.
Real Madrid recovered from the second-minute dismissal of goalkeeper Iker Casillas to secure a battling 1-0 win at Espanyol on Sunday and cut Barcelona's lead at the top of La Liga to five points.
Real Madrid and Barcelona are heading for a King's Cup showdown after the great rivals won their semi-final first legs on Wednesday. Real won a controversial game 1-0 at holders Sevilla thanks to a goal from Karim Benzema while Lionel Messi struck twice as 2009 winners Barca thumped Almeria 5-0 at the Nou Camp.
Barcelona, Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid resume a nail-biting La Liga title race on Saturday after all notched up victories on Wednesday. Leaders Barcelona, who ended a four-game winless streak by hammering Deportivo La Coruna 8-0 away from home, host struggling Sporting Gijon on Saturday. Atletico battled to a 1-0 win at Athletic Bilbao to stay level on 79 points with Barcelona, who top the table with a superior head-to-head record and host Malaga. Real stayed one point behind their title rivals after beating Villarreal 3-0 and are expected to be without top scorer Cristiano Ronaldo for their visit to struggling neighbours Rayo Vallecano. The Portuguese forward was unable to finish the game against Villarreal after suffering cramp in stoppage time but eased concerns he had suffered a serious injury.
The injury list in the La Liga keeps growing as the season progresses and this time Lionel Messi and Gareth Bale are the unfortunate victims...
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.
The following is the draw for the Champions League last 16 which was held in Nyon on Monday:
Barcelona blew the La Liga title race wide open when Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick in a 4-3 comeback win for the champions at 10-man Real Madrid in an action-packed 'Clasico' on Sunday.
Leaders Real Madrid edged closer to the Primera Liga title beating Deportivo Coruna 3-1 in the Bernabeu on Saturday.
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