Two late goals gave Barcelona a hard fought 2-0 win over their bitter rivals Real Madrid in the standout game of the week.

The run up to the match had seen speculation over how Real Madrid would approach the match in the Camp Nou stadium after the appointment of Juande Ramos as the replacement for the sacked Bernd Schuster.

Ramos opted for a defensive strategy, aiming to hit Barcelona on the break and his tactics looked as if they would give his sidea share of the points, especially after Iker Casillas saved a second half penalty from Samuel Eto'o.

With seven minutes left, Eto'o atoned for his error by scoring the first goal of the match and with their rivals looking desperately for the equalizer, Leo Messi added a second in injury time.

The result leaves Real Madrid 12 points behind Barcelona after three consecutive defeats.

Valencia took advantage of Real Madrid's loss to continue their positive season and climb into second place.

Unai Emery's team came from a goal down against struggling Espanyol to take all three points thanks to second half goals from Raul Albiol and Vicente Rodriguez.

Sevilla moved into third with a 1-0 win over Villarreal. The side from Andalusia controlled the game from start to finish, but it needed a goal from midfielder Renato on the stroke of half time to ensure the points stayed at the Sanchez Pizjuan.

Atletico Madrid moved into fifth with their 2-0 win against Betis. Maxi Rodriguez and Kun Aguero scoring the goals that lifts them above their neighbours Real.

Valladolid maintained their charge up the season with a 3-0 triumph against Deportivo la Coruna. Jonathan Sesma put the home side up after just 14 minutes before Pedro Lopez doubled their lead with a brilliant goal from almost the halfway line.

Pedro Leon ended the scoring 11 minutes after the break to leave Valladolid pushing for a place in Europe.

Getafe also moved into the top half with a comfortable 4-1 win at home to Mallorca. Two goals in each half gave Victor Munoz's side three points, while their rivals dropped into the relegation zone and Mallorca coach Gregorio Manzano could lose his job as a result.

Malaga took a step away from the danger zone thanks to their 2-0 victory against Numancia. However, the home fans had to wait until the last five minutes before Apono and Nabil Baha ended Numancia's resistance.

It was a different story in Bilbao, where Athletic Club sealed a 3-0 win against Sporting with all of the goals arriving in the first 32 minutes. Fernando Llorente, Andoni Iriola and David Lopezdid the damage in a game that was marked by a collision between Athletic's Carlos Gurpegi and Sporting keeper Ivan Cuellar, both of whom had to be stretchered off the pitch in the last minute.

Elsewhere both Almeria and Racing Santander slipped closer to danger after a 1-1 draw. Meanwhile Recreativo Huelva beat Osasuna 1-0 in a game between the two team who had started the day last and penultimate in the Primera Liga.

(Xinhua News Agency December 15, 2008)