First division, day 20

Barcelona stay a point clear at the top of the table after beating Celta 3-1 on Sunday night. Saviola headed home Gio Van Bronckhorst's cross to open the scoring shortly before the break, but Nené equalised soon after the restart with a hotly disputed penalty after Angel fell under Gio's challenge. Referee Delgado Ferreiro awarded another controversial spot kick though to the home side after Gio was tripped on the edge of the area which Ronaldinho converted, and Giuly wrapped things up with a third goal later on.

Sevilla stay within a point of Barcelona after beating Levante 2-4, a result which sent the Valencia based side down into the bottom three. Kanouté and Kerzhakov scored either side of half time, and Tomassi put through his own net midway through the second half to put the visitors three up. But Dehú and Reggi headed two back within a few minutes, and it was not until Alfaro headed home an Alves free kick that the Andalusians were sure of the three points.

Betis gave their city neighbours a helping hand as well after coming from behind to beat fourth placed Valencia 2-1, the win taking Luis Fernández's side out of the relegation zone above Levante and Celta. David Villa put the visitors ahead after Silva set him up in the tenth minute, but only five minutes later Robert levelled the scores. And Robert got the winner from the penalty spot after Albelda fouled Capi in the second half.

Zaragoza stay in sixth spot after a 1-1 draw with Deportivo. The Galicians went ahead in the twentieth minute when Taborda headed Arizmendi's cross past César, but Taborda then got himself sent off after giving away a penalty on Diego Milito near the end. Milito converted the spot kick himself to save a point for his side.

Getafe are level with Zaragoza on points after a 2-0 win over Osasuna. The two sides will be meeting in the cup midweek, but Getafe got the first blow in with two goals from Güiza in the first half, both on rapid breakaways. The Pamplona based side ended with ten men when Josetxo picked up a second booking later on.

Recreativo drop down the table to eighth though after losing 2-1 at Mallorca. Local defenders Ballesteros and Nunes got the goals for the Balearic Islanders shortly before half time. Juanma pulled one back soon after the restart, and Ballesteros got himself sent off soon afterwards, but the Andalusians couldn't prevent their hosts from clocking up only their second home win of the season.

The Basque derby ended with a 0-2 victory for Athletic Bilbao over Real Sociedad, leaving the San Sebastian side further down in the drop zone. Iraola opened the scoring in the twelfth minute, but Real should have equalised when they were awarded a penalty later in the first half. However Aranzubia saved Xabi Prieto's spot kick, and Iraola added a second goal after the break.

An extraordinary result in the Catalan derby between Gimnàstic and Espanyol, the home side running out 4-0 winners to move to within a point of Real Sociedad. All the goals came in the first half, with Portillo heading the first from Juan's cross, Campano converting a penalty for the second, and Pinilla and César Navas adding two more later on. Half of Nàstic's twelve points have come against their opponents. (28.01.07)

Playing on Saturday, Real Madrid started their game at Villarreal needing a win to take them to the top of the table. However it was another disappointing evening for them, a 1-0 defeat meaning they stay in third spot. The only goal of the game came from young midfielder Marcos García, who ran on to a through ball from Mati Fernández to beat Casillas midway through the second half of the match. It was Villarreal's first home win in four games, and the first time in their history that they have beaten Real Madrid.

Madrid's neighbours Atlético didn't do much better though. Javier Aguirre's side could have been level on points with their city rivals had they won, but in the end they could only manage a 1-1 draw against an improving Racing Santander. Zigic put the visitors ahead after Munitis flicked on a long clearance by keeper Toño a quarter of an hour from the end, but Pablo saved a point with a header from Jurado's free kick just a couple of minutes later. (27.01.07)