It was a good weekend for both Real Madrid – who extended their lead at the top of La Liga – and Barcelona in their top-four battle.
Real Madrid extended their lead at the top of La Liga to six points this weekend after they recorded a 3-0 victory over Alaves, and Sevilla slipped up.
Karim Benzema was once again the star man for Los Blancos as he created goals for Marco Asensio and Vinicius Junior before he converted a penalty in stoppage-time as the Bernabeu side bounced back from midweek disappointment against Paris Saint-Germain.
Second-placed Sevilla cold only draw 1-1 at Espanyol despite taking a first-half lead through Rafa Mir. Sergi Darder equalised five minutes into the second half before Jules Kounde was sent off.
Real Betis did manage a crucial 2-1 win on Sunday thanks to an 83rd minute penalty from Willian Jose. Vedat Muriqi had earlier cancelled out Alex Moreno’s opener for the home side. Betis remain in third position on 46 points.
Meanwhile, the major talking point in La Liga remains the battle for fourth spot. Atletico Madrid took it on a temporary basis on Saturday thanks to an emphatic 3-0 win against Osasuna.
Diego Simeone’s side, who face Manchester United in the Champions League on Wednesday, have struggled in recent weeks but had no such problems in Pamplona. Joao Felix opened the scoring after three minutes before Luis Suarez added to that lead around the hour mark. Although Atleti were by no means dominant Angel Correa set the seal on the victory.
But they were overtaken by Barcelona on Sunday after the Blaugrana thrashed Valencia 4-1 at Mestalla.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored his first two goals in a Barcelona shirt since his January move from Arsenal. Frenkie de Jong and Pedri scored the other goals.
Villarreal turned the heat up on both Barcelona and Atletico Madrid by securing a victory on Saturday against Granada.
In-form attacker Arnaut Danjuma once again caught the eye as he netted a hat-trick, including two penalties. Luis Milla got one back form the penalty spot for the home side but Moi Gomez capped a fine afternoon for the guests by netting in stoppage time.
Saturday’s other fixture was a relegation match up between Getafe and Cadiz that finished 1-1. That suited the side from Madrid more than their hosts, who are now on 20 points and four points from safety.
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