Sharp thinking and brilliant execution by Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo lifted Barcelona and Real Madrid to wins at Atletico Madrid and Rayo Vallecano respectively on Sunday that mantained Real's 10-point lead over their great rivals at the top of La Liga.
Messi caught the Atletico defence napping to score with a breathtaking 81st-minute free kick and secure a 2-1 success for Barca, while an audacious Ronaldo backheel gave Real a 1-0 victory against Madrid neighbours Rayo. It was a 28th league goal of the campaign for Messi, who succeeded Ronaldo as World Player of the Year and has won the award three times on the trot, leaving him one behind the former Manchester United forward at the top of the La Liga scoring chart.
With 24 of 38 matches played, Jose Mourinho's Real have 64 points, with Pep Guardiola's Barca on 54 in second and Valencia, who lost 2-1 at home to Sevilla on Sunday, 14 points further back in third. Levante, the lowly Valencia-based club who are this season's surprise package, climbed to fourth on 35 points thanks to their 2-1 win at Espanyol on Saturday, although only eight points separate them from Villarreal in 17th.
Messi's genius settled an intense battle at the Calderon after Atletico's Radamel Falcao had cancelled out Daniel Alves's opening goal. Malaga, who thumped bottom side Real Zaragoza 5-1 on Saturday, also have 34 points in sixth, level with seventh-placed Osasuna, who beat Granada 2-1 on Sunday.
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