Barcelona will top the La Liga table entering the final weekend of the season after recording a 5-0 victory over Espanyol in Sunday afternoon's Catalan derby.
Luis Enrique's side would have won the title with one game to spare if they beat Espanyol at Camp Nou, second-placed Atletico Madrid lost at Levante and third-placed Real Madrid failed to beat Valencia at the Bernabeu.
Atletico fell to a 2-1 defeat at basement side Levante, but Real Madrid's 3-2 home win over 10-man Valencia has sent the title race into the final weekend, with Barcelona one point clear of second-placed Los Blancos.
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Fernando Torres's early goal for Atletico in Valencia had actually sent Diego Simeone's side to the top of the table, but Barcelona regained first in the eighth minute when Lionel Messi curled a free kick past Pau Lopez.
The home side had the ball in the back of the net for a second time two minutes later, but Ivan Rakitic was adjudged to have been offside when he turned a Messi effort home from close range.
It was Barcelona that continued to dominate proceedings at Camp Nou, and Neymar and Messi both sent free kicks over Pau Lopez's crossbar during a period of sustained pressure from Enrique's side.
Espanyol's first attempt on goal came in the 30th minute when Felipe Caicedo outmuscled Gerard Pique inside the box, but it was ultimately a comfortable save for stand-in goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
The away side picked up three bookings in the space of 11 minutes as Barcelona continued to threaten in the final third, but Enzo Roco and Ruben Duarte were defending for their lives to keep the score at 1-0 entering the half-time break.
Barcelona started the second period on the front foot and continued to force free kicks in dangerous positions, but Neymar wasted two set-piece opportunities as Espanyol stayed in the game with 50 minutes on the clock.
The home side did have their second in the 52nd minute, however, as Messi poked a pass into the path of Luis Suarez and the Uruguay international made no mistake from inside the box.
Suarez might have made it 3-0 in the 55th minute after again finding space inside the Espanyol box, but Pau Lopez was out to confront the striker and keep the score down at Camp Nou.
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Suarez did have his second just past the hour, however, when he headed a Neymar corner past Pau Lopez for his 55th goal of the season in all competitions.
Rakitic might have scored a fourth for the home side 20 minutes from time when he struck one from distance, but the Croatian's effort was always moving over the crossbar during a period of sustained pressure from the league leaders.
Barcelona had their fourth in the 74th minute though when Rafinha converted from close range after Espanyol stopper Pau Lopez had fumbled a loose pass from Messi.
Enrique's side then had a fifth seven minutes from time when Espanyol's back four went missing, allowing Suarez to slide a pass into Neymar, who just could not miss from close range.
Next weekend, Barcelona will travel to Granada knowing that three points would see them retain the title. Real Madrid will visit Deportivo La Coruna needing a win to stand any chance of taking advantage of a slip from their Clasico rivals, but Atletico have dropped out of the race ahead of the final matchday.
Matt Law
