Barca go eight clear

Barcelona have one hand on the La Liga title after Lionel Messi's electrifying free-kick earned them a merited 1-0 triumph over Atletico Madrid on Sunday. 

Atletico touched base at the Camp Nou on the back of eight sequential wins however Barca stopped the surge and reestablished their own lead at the best to eight focuses, with 11 amusements left to play. 

Messi demonstrated the distinction once more, his bowing first-half strike deserving of winning any challenge and taking his own particular vocation count to an astounding 600 objectives, 539 for Barca and 61 for Argentina. 

The main smear on an overwhelming Barcelona execution was damage to Andres Iniesta, who must be substituted following 34 minutes with what the club affirmed was a strain in the back of his thigh. Iniesta now has 10 days to recuperate before one week from now's Champions League second leg against Chelsea. 

The development to this challenge, named 'the Grand Final' by areas of the Spanish press, was driven by discuss a Barcelona plunge following three attracts five group recreations, with the in-shape Atletico prepared to move inside two purposes of their opponents. 

In any case, Diego Simeone's methodology of retain and counter neglected to pay off here and, at last, the guests may effectively have been beaten by a more insistent scoreline. 

Atletico striker Antoine Griezmann, in the interim, who came in with seven objectives in two recreations, was to a great extent mysterious. 

For all Atletico's teach and cautious thoroughness, one mix-up in the 26th moment was all it required. Thomas Partey cut the back of Messi's foot 25 yards out and the forward whipped the free-kick past the scrambling Oblak and into the best corner. 

Whatever is left of the half was a photo of Barca predominance, intruded on just by the harmed Iniesta being supplanted by Andre Gomes and a modest bunch of minor encounters, the most imperative of which saw Messi hack down Filipe Luis and gain a yellow card.