Hansi Flick's Barcelona near historic La Liga start as Jose Mourinho's Real Madrid chase

Barcelona can equal the best start to a La Liga season in their history by beating Getafe on Saturday, but the fate of the only previous Blaugrana side to begin with eight straight victories offers Jose Mourinho's Real Madrid an important reminder that October records do not decide championships.

Hansi Flick's side have made an extraordinary start to their bid for a third successive Spanish title.

Barcelona have won all seven of their league games, scoring 31 goals and conceding only seven to collect the maximum 21 points.

That has already opened a six-point advantage over fourth-placed Real Madrid, who have suffered defeats away to both Real Betis and Atletico Madrid during an inconsistent opening under Mourinho.

Victory over Getafe at the Camp Nou would take Barcelona to eight wins from eight and equal a club record that has stood since 2013-14.

There is, however, one detail about that record that should interest Madrid.

The Barcelona team that set it did not win La Liga.

Barcelona can match Tata Martino's eight-win record

Gerardo Martino's Barcelona began the 2013-14 campaign by beating Levante 7-0 before following up with victories over Malaga, Valencia, Sevilla, Rayo Vallecano, Real Sociedad, Almeria and Valladolid.

That made them the first - and so far only - Barcelona side to win their opening eight La Liga matches.

Their winning sequence finally ended with a goalless draw away to Osasuna in game nine.

Flick's current team have been even more destructive going forward.

Martino's side scored 28 times across those opening eight victories; Barcelona have already reached 31 after only seven games this season.

The reigning champions have also won eight successive matches in all competitions and return from the international break with Getafe standing between them and another piece of club history.

On current form, the title race already risks developing into a familiar problem for Real Madrid.

Barca are six points clear of Mourinho's side before the eighth round of fixtures, and every dropped point increases the importance of the first Clasico of the season later this month.

Yet Madrid do not need to look very far into Barcelona's history to find evidence that even an apparently perfect beginning can unravel.

Why 2013-14 offers Real Madrid hope

Martino's Barcelona did not simply start with eight victories and then collapse.

They remained serious title contenders throughout the campaign, and even defeated Real Madrid 2-1 in the first Clasico after their winning run had ended.

However, Atletico Madrid refused to disappear. Diego Simeone's side ultimately arrived at the Camp Nou on the final day knowing that a draw would be enough to become champions.

Alexis Sanchez put Barcelona ahead, but Diego Godin equalised early in the second half, and the 1-1 result handed Atletico their first La Liga title since 1995-96.

Barcelona, despite producing the best opening eight games in their league history, finished second.

That precedent does not make Real's current position comfortable. Mourinho's second spell has already produced a very different opening from his first stint at the Bernabeu, with more attacking output but significantly less defensive control.

Mourinho's team still need greater consistency, particularly away from home, and cannot simply wait for Flick's side to begin dropping points.

Barcelona's current attacking numbers also suggest that this team may ultimately prove stronger than Martino's version.

But the 2013-14 season demonstrates why a six-point deficit after seven rounds is very different from a decisive gap in the spring. Mourinho himself insisted after the Atletico defeat that Real Madrid remain capable of fighting for the title.

Real still have two Clasicos in which they can directly affect Barcelona's advantage, beginning with the meeting at the Camp Nou on October 25. Before then, Madrid must ensure that the gap does not grow.

Barcelona can make history against Getafe by matching their greatest-ever start. Mourinho's encouragement is that the last team to do so discovered that a perfect first eight matches still offered no guarantee over the remaining 30.