La Liga wrap: Real, Barca keep on winning

Real Madrid produced a 2-1 away win at rivals Atletico Madrid but their title rivals Barcelona also won in Saturday’s La Liga action.

Jose Mourinho’s squad travelled to the Vicente Calderon expecting a tough battle and they were never entirely comfortable against their city rivals, who occupy seventh spot on the table.

Both sides entered the match in good form, with Real unbeaten in 10 while it had been five matches since Atletico lost, a result that appeared on the cards when Karim Benzema scored after just 11 minutes for the visitors.

Sami Khedira helped set up the goal for the French forward, who netted his 10th in his last eight games for the club.

Another one of Germany’s World Cup stars was involved in the second goal, which came just after the half-hour mark.

The impressive Marcelo provided the assist for Mesut Oezil who scored for the fifth time in the league this season and it looked like the game could get away from Atletico.

But Quique Sanchez Flores’ side dug in and after defending valiantly for periods of time, they also had their own chances to score, one of which was finally taken by Sergio Aguero after 86 minutes.

The goal proved too late for the hosts, but there were some nervy moments late on for Real who cannot afford to drop points with Barcelona in such a rich vein of form.

That form continued at the Nou Camp as Barca’s unbeaten streak extended to 27 with a 2-1 home win over mid-table Getafe.

Dani Alves grabbed an early goal after 17 minutes and the match looked to be over when Bojan, making his 100th league appearance for the club at the age of just 20, scored early into the second half.

Getafe did pull a goal back, with Manu finding the back of the net with just two minutes of play remaining, but Barcelona held on to remain five points clear at the top of the league.

In the day’s other match, Mallorca produced a 1-0 home win against Real Zaragoza, thanks to Jonathan de Guzman’s 67th-minute goal.

Real goalkeeper Doblas was given a straight red card just three minutes before the goal in a match littered with bookings.