Barcelona have opened up a nine-point gap at the top of the La Liga table as they came from behind to beat Atletico Madrid 4-1 at the Camp Nou.
Radamel Falcao gave the visitors the lead, but goals from Adriano, Sergio Busquets and a Lionel Messi brace secured the points for the Catalans.
Falcao almost put Atletico ahead on 10 minutes as his effort came back off the woodwork.
The Colombian had to wait until the half hour before he finally made the breakthrough and he did it in style as a marauding run from his own half was capped with a delicate finish past Victor Valdes.
Despite an under-par first-half display from Barca, the drew level soon after when Adriano fired spectacularly into the top corner from the edge of the box.
The hosts then got themselves in front in the dying moments of the opening 45 minutes as Busquets clinically rifled the ball home.
The Catalans all but sealed the victory just before the hour through Messi's low drive past Thibaut Courtois.
The Argentine wasn't done there though and he netted his 90th goal of the calendar year with two minutes left to play.
Jack Prescott
