RIVAL WATCH: Real Madrid slip up, Sevilla keep up the pressure and Atlético fall further behind

Ten-man Real Madrid managed to secure a 3-3 draw against Las Palmas having been 3-1 down prior to Gareth Bale’s sending off. Ronaldo turned the game around with a header and a penalty which helped secure a point for his side on Wednesday night.

Isco put Real Madrid ahead but his goal was soon cancelled out by Palmas’ midfielder Tana. Jonathan Viera and Kevin-Prince Boateng put the away side two goals ahead. Ronaldo turned the game around with a header and a penalty which helped secure a point for his side on Wednesday night. The result means Barça, with 57 points, move to the top of the table in front of Real Madrid, who are one behind albeit with a game in hand.

Sevilla maintain the pressure on the top two with an important and hard fought 1-0 victory against difficult opposition in Valverde’s Athletic. Iborra’s early goal proved to be enough for the Andalusian side to grind out a victory which leaves them in third place two points behind Barça on 55.

Meanwhile, Atlético slipped further behind from the top three following an away draw at Deportivo. This leaves them way back on 46 points in a battle with Real Sociedad for the final Champions League place. The home side took the lead following an Oblak error which led to Andone’s opener. Griezmann was able to level the match with a fantastic goal but in the end Atlético were lucky to get a draw.

Next up for Barça is a visit from Celta de Vigo at 8.45pm CET on Saturday. In the last two games Celta have drawn with relegation candidates Sporting Gijón, who Barça beat 6-1 on Wednesday, and fellow mid-table team Espanyol.

In the first game, Celta played Sporting away and they managed to secure a point thanks to a Iago Aspas goal. Wednesday’s match saw the Galician side draw 2-2 in a match against the team from Barcelona. The dangerous Iago Aspas was on the mark again in a frantic first half in which A Fontas was sent off.

Late win in the Coupe de France

In France, Unai Emery’s side booked their place in the last eight of the cup competition following a hard-fought 2-0 victory against Niort. Barça’s Champions League opponents needed late goals from their two substitutes Edinson Cavani and Javier Pastore to beat the Ligue 2 side and secure their place in the quarter-finals. PSG made eight changes, with Krychowiak getting a run out, but ultimately they needed to bring on the big guns to secure progress.