La Liga Round-Up: Top three all win, Messi hits hat-trick

LIONEL Messi scored a hat-trick as Barcelona routed Tenerife 5-0 on Sunday to maintain its two-point advantage in the Spanish league after closest rival Real Madrid also won, beating Mallorca 2-0 thanks to goals from Gonzalo Higuain and Esteban Granero. Alejandro Alfaro had three good chances to put the hosts ahead but the Tenerife striker hit [...]

Barcelona back top, Real Madrid keep up pressure

BARCELONA hit three goals in ten late first-half minutes to get back into the game against Tenerife and eventually ran out 5-0 winners. Lionel Messi bagged a hat-trick to send the champions back on top of the league. Victor Valdes had saved three one-on-ones in the early stages, the first deflecting on to the crossbar, before Barca found any [...]

Tenerife 0-5 Barcelona: Messi hat-trick sends Barrca top

LIONEL Messi inspired Barcelona to a 5-0 win at Tenerife as the Catalan giants ended the weekend as they started it: holding a two-point lead at the top of the table. Real Madrid briefly led the way after beating Real Mallorca 2-0 earlier in the evening, but Barça swept back to the summit after brushing aside Tenerife in the Canary [...]

Real Madrid 2-0 Mallorca: Higuain Star

GONZALO Higuain scored one and made the other as Real Madrid kept the pressure on Barcelona in the Primera Division title race with victory over fellow high-fliers Real Mallorca at a snow-covered Bernabeu.. In-form striker Higuain netted the opener and then set up the second for Esteban Granero as Madrid made it nine wins from nine at home this [...]

Real Madrid stays second after Osasuna 0-0 draw

REAL Madrid missed its chance to go top of the Spanish league on Sunday after being held to a 0-0 draw at Osasuna. A win would have put Madrid level on points with Barcelona and ahead on goal difference after the Catalans drew 1-1 against Villarreal on Saturday. Barcelona leads the standings with 40 points after the first round of games [...]

Real Madrid miss chance to go top as they are held at Osasuna

Real Madrid squandered a chance to climb above Barcelona to the top of La Liga when they were held to a 0-0 draw at mid-table Osasuna on Sunday. A win would have put Manuel Pellegrini's side top on goal difference after Barca dropped their first home points of the season in a 1-1 draw with Villarreal on Saturday. However, a gritty [...]

Osasuna 0-0 Real Madrid: Real fail to take top spot

REAL Madrid missed the chance to go top of La Liga as they were held to a 0-0 draw by Osasuna in Pamplona. After Barcelona were held by Villarreal on Saturday night, Manuel Pellegrini's side knew that a win would put them top on goal difference. However they failed to create chances against a well-organised Osasuna side despite naming the [...]

La Liga: Barca drop points, Atletico beat Sevilla

Barcelona dropped points at Camp Nou for the first time in the campaign as they began 2010 with a 1-1 draw against Villarreal. Having shown the fans the six trophies they won during 2009 prior to kick-off, Barca had looked to be on course to get the new year underway in style as Pedro put the ball into the net seven minutes into the match after [...]

Late Zigic winner pushes Valencia up to third

Nikola Zigic was the hero as Valencia snatched a last-gasp 1-0 victory over plucky Espanyol in the first Primera Division match of 2010. Espanyol frustrated the home side for long periods and looked good for a point as the game moved into stoppage time. But Zigic, a second-half substitute, headed a dramatic late winner to move Los Che [...]

Villarreal holds Barcelona to 1-1 draw at Nou Camp

VILLAREAL held Barcelona to a 1-1 draw in the Spanish league on Saturday through David Fuster's equalizer after Pedro Rodriguez had put the defending champions ahead. Rodriguez followed up a rebound to score in the seventh minute after Thierry Henry's first-time volley had struck the crossbar. Fuster scored his third goal of the season by [...]