Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos again came to his side's rescue as they snatched a dramatic 3-2 victory over Deportivo La Coruna on Saturday to keep Zinedine Zidane's side six points clear at the top of La Liga and set a club record 35 games unbeaten.
Sergio Ramos has so often been Real Madrid's man of the moment but the captain saw the tables turn as his own goal helped his former club Sevilla to a 2-1 win over the La Liga leaders on Sunday, ending a record-breaking 40-game unbeaten run.
In other matches, super-sub Messi helped Barca romp past Atletico
Samuel Eto'o scored his 24th goal of the season as Barcelona beat Villarreal 1-0.
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.
Holders Barcelona will face fellow Spaniards Atletico Madrid, runners-up two seasons ago, in the Champions League quarter-finals following the draw in Nyon on Friday.
Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane is happy with his squad and the club has not discussed possible reinforcements despite FIFA's decision to ban them from the next two transfer windows, he said on Saturday. FIFA announced on Thursday it had banned Real and neighbours Atletico Madrid from registering players for the next two windows for breaching rules on signing non-Spanish Under-18 players. Both clubs denied wrongdoing and said they would appeal. The list of players included at least one of Zidane's four sons, who play for various Real youth teams, although the club have not confirmed which of them were singled out by FIFA.
Barcelona kept up the pressure on La Liga title rivals Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid when Lionel Messi struck from the penalty spot in a 1-0 win at Espanyol in Saturday's Catalan derby.
Champions Barcelona scrambled a barely deserved 1-1 at Getafe, in the Primera Liga.
La Liga leaders Real Madrid returned to winning ways after two defeats, making light of playing most of the second half with 10 men to triumph 3-0 at home to mid-table Espanyol on Saturday.
The rest of Barcelona's squad will have to do "a little bit more" to make up for the absence of five-times World Player of the Year Lionel Messi for the next three weeks, according to captain Andres Iniesta.
Images from the La Liga matches played across Spain on Saturday.
Barcelona want Spain midfielder Andres Iniesta to end his career at the Catalan club, coach Gerardo Martino said on the eve of Saturday's La Liga game at Almeria.
If there is one lesson Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti has learned during his two seasons in Spain it is that resting on your laurels is not an option at the world's richest club by income.
Luis Suarez feared he had destroyed his career and that Barcelona would not want to sign him following his four-month ban for biting at the World Cup.
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.
"It is a story that I wanted to tell in my own words, about what happened. I feel it is the biggest story of my career and I thought that I held it for too long by myself and that I needed to share it with other people. The moment was now and (being in) Madrid, on the eve of El Clasico on Sunday, was the perfect occasion to make it happen," the former striker said.
Lionel Messi's first-half goal earned visiting Barcelona a 1-1 draw on Wednesday and a 3-1 aggregate win over Real Sociedad, setting up their fourth King's Cup final in six years.
Real Madrid opened a 10-point lead over Barcelona at the top of La Liga after Cristiano Ronaldo's sixth hat-trick of the season clinched a 4-2 comeback win at home to 10-man Levante on Sunday.
Barcelona's stuttering title bid suffered another setback when they lost 2-1 at home to Valencia on Sunday, while Atletico Madrid moved level on points with the La Liga leaders after a comfortable win over Granda.
Barcelona dropped their first points of the La Liga season as their star-studded forward line misfired in a 0-0 draw away to Malaga on Wednesday.
Xavi slams Real Madrid over Casillas exit
Villarreal went top with a 1-0 win over Atletico Madrid on Saturday after a toothless Real Madrid were held 0-0 at home to 10-man Malaga and Lionel Messi suffered a serious injury as Barcelona beat Las Palmas 2-1.
Sporting director Leonardo Araujo, back for a second stint in the role, has said the Brazilian can leave if a buyer is found.
Robert Lewandowski scored four goals to inspire Borussia Dortmund to a stunning 4-1 demolition of Real Madrid in their Champions League semi-final first leg on Wednesday.
Leaders Barcelona played out a second straight 0-0 draw in LaLiga after mid-table Getafe battled for a home point in a hard-fought game on Sunday.
Leaders Real Madrid beat Barcelona 1-0 at the Nou Camp to take a vice-like hold on the Spanish Primera Liga title race.
Defending champions Bayern Munich must face Diego Simeone's Atletico Madrid after they were drawn together in Champions League Group A alongside Salzburg and Lokomotiv Moscow.
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.
Bayern Munich coach Pep Guardiola shrugged off criticism.
UEFA issued a strong statement jointly with English, Spanish and Italian leagues and football federations, saying they were ready to use "all measures" to confront any breakaway and saying any participating clubs would be banned from domestic leagues, such as the Premier League.
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Seydou Keita scored a stoppage-time equaliser as 10-man Barcelona drew 2-2 at Real Betis to wrap up Pep Guardiola's last La Liga campaign as coach of the club on Saturday.
'There is no price limit to let him go or a price that we are ready to give in'
In leading Real Madrid to their 11th European Cup less than five months after inheriting an unhappy team from Rafael Benitez, Zinedine Zidane has cemented his heroic status at the Bernabeu and appears to have assured his immediate future.
Alaves reached the King's Cup final for the first time in their 96-year history as Edgar Mendez's 83rd-minute strike saw off Celta Vigo 1-0 in the semi-final second leg on Wednesday to take the Basque side through 1-0 on aggregate.
"More than the 4-0 scoreline, the most important effect of our win is the psychological blow," said Ronaldinho.
Manchester City swept aside second-tier Cardiff City 2-0 with first-half goals from Kevin De Bruyne and Raheem Sterling on Sunday to reach the FA Cup fifth round in their quest to win an unprecedented four trophies this season.
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A leap in commercial and broadcast revenue lifted Manchester United into second place behind Real Madrid on the list of the world's richest clubs in 2013-14, according to Deloitte's latest Football Money League.
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