La Liga Title Race Heats Up: Barca, Madrid Edge Closer to Decisive Phase

With the league moving towards a decisive phase at both ends of the points table, Barcelona and Real Madrid are separated by four points, with Barca leading the standings with 73 points while Real Madrid have 69 points after 29 rounds of matches.

Barcelona defeated Rayo Vallecano 1-0 while Real Madrid edged archrivals Atletico Madrid 3-2 in a hard-fought Madrid Derby.

At the bottom, Levante is still clinging to survival hopes thanks to a young local striker. Here are some things we learned this weekend in La Liga.

1 Real Madrid win, but Mbappe's change was nearly costly

Real Madrid won an entertaining and controversial derby 3-2 at home to Atletico Madrid, with two goals from Vinicius Jr and one from Federico Valverde, who was later sent off.

The game saw Kylian Mbappe come on in the 64th minute to replace Thiago Pitarch, but the Frenchman looked well short of full sharpness. After Valverde's red card, his lack of mobility allowed Atletico to take control and push for an equaliser. Real Madrid said Mbappe has recovered from his knee problems, but he did not look fully fit, and the decision to bring him on nearly cost his side two vital points.

2 Break comes at the right time for Barcelona

FC Barcelona beat Rayo Vallecano 1-0 at home thanks to Ronald Araujo's first-half goal, but Hansi Flick's side had to work hard to hold on.

Barcelona looked tired in both their pressing and passing, and Rayo created several chances to level after repeatedly beating the home side's high defensive line, only to waste them.

Fortunately for Barcelona, goalkeeper Joan Garcia produced several big saves to justify his first international call-up. Flick hopes the international break helps his players recover after an intense start to 2026.

They will certainly need to improve, because their first game after the break is away to Atletico, which beat them 4-0 in the Copa del Rey.

3 Quietly does it: Villarreal moves into third

It took Villarreal only 23 minutes on Friday night for Gerard Moreno, Georges Mikautadze, and Nicolas Pepe to secure three points in a 3-1 home win over Real Sociedad.

Villarreal produced an outstanding first half against one of La Liga's form teams and could have scored more but for the woodwork and Real Sociedad goalkeeper Alex Remiro.

The win lifted Villarreal above Atletico Madrid into third place and, even more importantly, left the club with a 14-point cushion over fifth-placed Betis with only 27 points left to play for, virtually assuring qualification for next season's Champions League.

4 Espi, the hero, as Levante keeps survival hopes alive

Levante's 20-year-old striker Carlos Espi had played only a bit-part role until last month, but the 1.94-meter-tall forward has now emerged as the man who could save his side from relegation.

Espi made headlines with two goals in Levante's 2-0 home win over Alaves. He then followed up with goals in 1-1 draws against Girona and Rayo Vallecano, and on Saturday scored twice again in a vital 4-2 home win over bottom side Oviedo.

In four matches, Espi has earned his side eight vital points.

Levante is still second from bottom, but unbeaten in four games and with confidence growing and Espi leading the line, it now has a real chance of avoiding relegation.

- IANS