Ernesto Valverde targets nine wins from nine to see out season

Ernesto Valverde has challenged his Barcelona players to see out the La Liga campaign with nine more wins as they close in on another title.

The Catalan giants are on the brink of a third top-flight success in four years after shaking off Athletic Bilbao with a convincing 2-0 win at Camp Nou on Sunday.

Defeat for second-placed Atletico Madrid against Villarreal means that Barca can now clinch the title next month, but Valverde has warned his players that they cannot afford to take their foot off the gas.

"We only have 27 points left [to play for] and we will try and win them all," he told reporters at his post-match presser. "Carrying on like this will help us reach our objective.

"We dominated in the first half and created lots of goalscoring opportunities - we were brilliant. In the second half, we were solid. The team and the players are showing that we attack and defend all together."

Barcelona are also into the final of the Copa del Rey and quarter-finals of the Champions League.