Barcelona put on a six-star display in the Catalan derby to show La Liga who’s boss after another weekend of pulsating football games.
But while the betting odds are stacked in favour of the title returning to Barca, Atletico have been matching the leaders stride for stride in recent weeks and remained seven points behind after a thumping 2-5 win over Sevilla.
Barcelona 6-1 Girona
Luis Suarez scored a hat-trick as the league leaders came from behind to give Girona six of the best. Lionel Messi helped himself to a brace while new boy Philippe Coutinho was on target in a near perfect night for Barca. Cristian Portu sparked the riot when he gave Girona a shock third-minute lead.
Sevilla 2-5 Atletico Madrid
Antoine Griezmann matched Suarez goal for goal as Atletico ran riot in Seville. Diego Costa slotted home the first on the half hour before Griezmann doubled the lead with a beauty just before the break. The French star made it three from the spot, Koke added a fourth and then Griezmann completed his hat-trick before Pablo Sarabia and Nolito made it (almost) respectable for the hosts.
Real Madrid 4-0 Alaves
Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice as Los Blancos swept an in-form Alaves aside at a packed Bernabeu. Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema added to the score as Real Madrid seem to be finding great at the right time of the season. They stay third while Alaves are still comfortably away from trouble.
Valencia 2-1 Real Sociedad
Valencia stay fourth after winning a third consecutive match thanks to a double strike from Santi Mina. After heading the first, he saw Mikel Oyarzabal cancel out the lead shortly after half-time, but Mina snatched the win from close range on 68 minutes.
Villarreal 1-0 Getafe
The Yellow Submarine grabbed a first win in four in a tight affair at home against Getafe. Carlos Bacca set up Enes Unal to fire the hosts ahead on three minutes, and they held on for the next 90 to move back up to fifth.
Celta Vigo 2-0 Eibar
Celta Vigo leapfrogged Eibar who started the weekend in seventh place, thanks to two second-half goals at the Balaidos. Iago Aspas opened the scoring from close range before Maxi Gomez made the points safe with 11 minutes left on the clock.
Leganes 0-0 Las Palmas
Eighteenth-placed Las Palmas picked up another valuable point to keep their survival hopes well and truly alive. In a game dominated by Leganes but with little potency, the most exciting moment came in the last five minutes when the ref dished out six yellow cards!
Athletic Bilbao 2-1 Malaga
A big crowd at the San Mames welcomed a win for Athletic Club over bottom club Malaga, done and dusted in the first half. Youssef En-Nesyri gave the visitors a surprise lead, but strikes from Markel Susaeta and Mikel San Jose won the points. En-Nesyri went for an early bath for a second yellow to compound Malaga’s misery.
Deportivo La Coruna 0-0 RCD Espanyol
Depor stay in deep trouble in the relegation zone after drawing a blank at home to Espanyol on Friday night. After an evenly matched first half, the hosts pressed for a winner but were toothless and remained in 19th.
17th-placed Levante host Real Betis tomorrow to bring the 25th round of fixtures to a close.
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