Barcelona cruised to a 2-0 win at Levante UD and regained their three-point lead at the top of La Liga on Sunday, as Real Madrid maintained their pursuit with a labored 2-1 win at Granada.
Champions Barcelona, with Luis Suarez scoring his 36th goal of the season, equaled a club record 28 matches unbeaten set in the 2010-2011 season under Pep Guardiola. They have won 23 and drawn five.
Third-placed Real Madrid remained four points behind Barca and one short of Atletico Madrid after a superb late strike by Luka Modric gave them victory at Granada.
Photo: EPA
Elsewhere, Gary Neville’s Valencia suffered another defeat, losing 1-0 at Real Betis Balompie to extend their winless run to 12 matches and nine under the former Manchester United defender.
“I don’t think we deserved to lose the game today,” said a beleaguered Neville, who faced questions about his job with his team plunging toward the relegation zone. “For me it’s quite clear we’re better than quite a few of the teams we are playing against, it’s just the results that are not going our way. It will turn around, I can’t believe if we keep playing like that we won’t get a win.”
Bottom team Levante might have snatched at least a deserved point with better finishing against Barcelona, who were in a lackadaisical mood after their 7-0 demolition of Valencia in the Copa del Rey last week.
Levante centerback David Navarro gave Barca a fortunate lead in the 21st minute when he turned an Andres Iniesta cross meant for Lionel Messi into his own net.
The visitors had to wait until the second minute of stoppage-time to make the result safe when Suarez finished off a counterattack with his 20th La Liga goal as Levante tried to snatch an equalizer and were caught off guard.
Karim Benzema gave Real Madrid the lead on the half hour at Granada when Dani Carvajal found him unmarked in the middle of the penalty area to score his 19th league goal.
Granada scored a deserved equalizer on the hour through substitute Youssef El-Arabi, who shot through goalkeeper Keylor Navas’ legs from the right.
Real needed a moment of inspiration to overcome a tough Granada side and Modric delivered it with a fine strike from the edge of the penalty area into the top corner for his first league goal of the season five minutes from time.
Betis striker Ruben Castro scored the only goal in Seville four minutes into the second half as they ended a nine-match winless run in the league dating back to a victory at Levante in November last year.
Valencia finished the match with 10 men after leftback Jose Luis Gaya was sent off for bringing down Charly Musonda in the 85th minute.
Neville’s team slipped to 13th, one place below Betis.
In Sunday’s other match, 10-man Sevilla, who had Argentine defender Federico Fazio sent off in the 25th minute for a second yellow card, hung on for a 1-1 draw at RC Celta de Vigo.
Sevilla went ahead through Daniel Carrico in the 43rd minute, but Celta got a deserved equalizer in the 64th with a fine goal by Claudio Beauvue, who converted a Daniel Wass cross from the left.
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