With just six games of the La Liga season remaining, the gap between the top two is still just two points after Barcelona and Real Madrid both recorded victories at the weekend.
Barcelona somewhat struggled to a 2-0 win over Valencia, before Real Madrid continued their pursuit at the top with a comfortable 3-1 victory over out-of-form Malaga.
Atletico Madrid, meanwhile, also won on Saturday as they took all three points from Deportivo La Coruna, but Valencia and Sevilla both dropped points in the race for fourth position.
Week 32's action opened on Friday evening as Levante scored late on to draw 2-2 with Espanyol and move out of the relegation zone in the process. As mentioned, the top three all won on Saturday, before Athletic Bilbao ended the night's action with a thumping 4-0 win over Getafe.
On Sunday, Almeria lost 2-0 at Rayo Vallecano to remain dangerously close to the bottom three, but fellow strugglers Granada managed to hold Sevilla to a 1-1 draw. Cordoba also picked up a surprise point at Villarreal, but the basement side are still eight points from 17th position.
Eibar's poor run of form also continued on Sunday as they lost 1-0 at home to Celta Vigo, who are now just four points from the top seven.
The week's action drew to a close on Monday evening as Elche boosted their survival hopes with a 1-0 over Real Sociedad, whose away struggles continue.
Here, Sports Mole has picked out its 11 star performers from another pulsating weekend of action in Spain's top flight.
Juan Carlos (Cordoba)
Villarreal had 10 shots on target during their home game with Cordoba on Sunday, but they could not find a way past Juan Carlos in the away side's goal. The goalkeeper, who was booed in Cordoba's last home game, made a host of stunning saves, especially in the second period to make it yet another frustrating 90 minutes for Marcelino's out-of-form team.
Antonio Amaya (Rayo Vallecano)
Rayo Vallecano's defence has been difficult to praise this season despite the club's impressive campaign. However, Amaya deserves his spot this week. The 31-year-old opened the scoring in his side's 2-0 win over Almeria with a clever header, while he was also impressive down the other end – dealing with pacey forward Thievy Bifouma, who caused a lot of problems.
Diego Mainz (Granada)
Mainz scored both goals in Granada's 1-1 draw at Sevilla on Sunday – one at each end of the field. The 32-year-old opened the scoring with a first-half header, but he found the back of his own net 20 minutes from time to hand Sevilla a point. The own goal should not take anything away from his performance, however, which was strong and composed.
Nicolas Otamendi (Valencia)
Otamendi might have been on the losing team at the weekend, but his performance was still of a very high level. The Valencia defender faced up to Lionel Messi on a number of occasions and dealt with his fellow Argentine extremely well. Messi did register late on, but his goal came when Valencia were pressing forward. Otamendi has had a very fine campaign.
James Rodriguez (Real Madrid)
The Colombian has only recently returned from a broken foot, but he has settled straight back into the Real Madrid XI. The attacker was again in fine form at the weekend – scoring Los Blancos' second in their 3-1 win over Malaga. The goal itself was absolute peach following a fine passing move, but it was James's overall contribution that impressed the most.
Michael Krohn-Dehli (Celta Vigo)
The legs might not move as fast as they once did, but the Dane has thrived in a withdrawn role for Celta this season. He pulled all of the strings in his side's 1-0 win over Eibar and was unfortunate not to get his name on the scoresheet. The 31-year-old is out of contract at the end of the season and it is no surprise that there are a whole host of interested parties.
Benat (Athletic Bilbao)
Benat has struggled to produce his best on a consistent basis this season, but his return to form has coincided with a turnaround in Bilbao's campaign. The Spanish midfielder was once again impressive at the weekend in his side's 4-0 win over Getafe. He was not always obviously involved, but the 28-year-old kept things ticking over from a deeper position.
Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid)
Griezmann took his La Liga total to 20 goals for the season with another double at the weekend. Atletico have not been at their best in recent weeks despite a decent run, but Griezmann's consistency has been impressive. Both of the attacker's goals against Depor were of a high level and his performances have made him one of the standout players in the league.
Lionel Messi (Barcelona)
Messi might have found Otamendi difficult to evade in Barcelona's 2-0 win over Valencia, but the Argentine still made an excellent contribution. He registered yet another assist after setting up Luis Suarez early on, before scoring his 400th Barcelona goal in second-half stoppage time. Even on his quieter days, Messi is still capable of moments of brilliance.
Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)
Like Messi, Ronaldo has had better games than he enjoyed this weekend, but the best players always contribute. The attacker missed a penalty in Real Madrid's 3-1 win over Malaga, but he set up two of his side's goals, before scoring the third late on. Ronaldo has now scored 50 goals for the season and needs just one more to better his tally from the previous campaign.
Aritz Aduriz (Athletic Bilbao)
Aduriz made it 14 league goals for the season in just 26 appearances with a double in Bilbao's 4-0 win over Getafe at the weekend. The Spaniard's first came from the penalty spot, before he scored a second moments into the second period. Getafe just could not live with the forward, whose physical presence and movement created a whole host of problems.
Matt Law
