Barcelona 4-1 Espanyol

The hosts took advantage of that unexpected gift to grab a thumping La Liga victory over their Catalan rivals and surge nine points clear at the top of the table.

Barca struck first as Ferran Torres headed in from Lamine Yamal's corner, before doubling the lead when that man Torres finished off a clever pass from chief provider Yamal.

Espanyol pulled one back through Pol Lozano's powerful long-range effort, briefly shifting momentum. However, Barcelona sealed the win late on when Yamal raced through and finished into an empty net, capping a dominant display despite a late push from the visitors.

Sevilla 2-1 Atletico Madrid

Sevilla ended a run of three consecutive top-flight defeats and boosted their La Liga survival hopes with a crucial win over a youthful Atletico Madrid.

The hosts took the lead early as Akor Adams converted a penalty after a VAR decision. Atletico Madrid responded in the 35th minute when debutant Javier Bonar headed home from Julio Diaz's cross. However, the hosts regained the advantage before half-time, with Nemanja Gudelj powering in a header from Ruben Vargas' corner. No further goals followed, as Sevilla's early strike and Gudelj's decisive header secured the win.

Elche 1-0 Valencia

La Liga bottom-dwellers Elche breathed new life into their relegation fight with a narrow victory over Valencia, ending their six-match winless head-to-head run in the process.

After a goalless first half, Elche fashioned a goal in the closing stages as Aleix Febas' incisive through ball released Lucas Cepeda, who fired past Stole Dimitrievski to score the only goal of the game. Valencia had earlier threatened but lacked cutting edge, with missed chances proving costly.

Real Sociedad 3-3 Alaves

Deportivo Alaves boosted their chances of La Liga survival after earning a dramatic, late point at Real Sociedad in a thrilling 3-3 draw, extending their unbeaten run to four games.

The Visitors led early through Duje Caleta-Car's own goal, but Real Sociedad quickly responded as Luka Sucic struck from distance. Then the hosts went back ahead via Ibrahim Diabate's close-range finish, only for Benat Turrientes' long-range effort to level again.

Sociedad then took the lead on the hour mark when Orri Oskarsson headed in Takefusa Kubo's cross. However, Alaves salvaged a dramatic draw deep into stoppage time as Lucas Boye fired home a late equaliser to cap a thrilling, goal-filled contest.

Tshegofatso Mabasa motivated to break into Bafana squad