Cesc Fabregas predicts close title race

Barcelona midfielder Cesc Fabregas believes that the title race in La Liga will go down to the wire this season.

After 23 matches of the season, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid all have 57 points, with the Catalan outfit currently leading on goal difference.

"La Liga is very equal at the moment," he told the club's official website. "We have to play each other and we have to be strong. We can't give away any advantages in games that are already going in our favour. I'm very proud of this team.

"In the first minutes [against Sevilla] we didn't play well. They were very intense, but from the point Alexis scored [the equaliser] the game was ours.

"This was a very important match. When you have a chance to take the top spot you have to take advantage of it. It's good to get it back so quickly. It was an important and fundamental match. We had to take the top spot in order to regain confidence."

Fabregas scored his side's fourth in their 4-1 win over Sevilla at the weekend.