Real Madrid took a giant leap towards the LaLiga title after Jude Bellingham’s stoppage-time goal secured a 3-2 win against arch-rivals Barcelona.
Bellingham fired home at the far post in the first minute of added time after Vinicius Junior’s first-half penalty and Lucas Vazquez had cancelled out goals from Barca pair Andreas Christensen and Fermin Lopez in El Clasico.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side moved 11 points clear of Barca at the top of the table with six games remaining with victory at the Bernabeu, where the visitors needed to win to preserve their title aspirations.
Atletico Madrid’s top-four hopes were dented as they followed up their midweek Champions League exit to Borussia Dortmund with a shock 2-0 defeat at Alaves, with Carlos Benavidez and Luis Rioja on target for the hosts.
Real Sociedad remain in the final European qualification place after being held 1-1 at Getafe, for whom Mason Greenwood assisted Oscar Rodriguez’s first-half equaliser after Ander Barrenetxea had given the visitors the lead.
In the Bundesliga, Josip Stanisic’s stoppage-time equaliser clinched champions Bayer Leverkusen a 1-1 draw at Borussia Dortmund and extended his side’s unbeaten run in all competitions this season to 45 matches.
Leverkusen, crowned German title winners for the first time last week, trailed to Niclas Fullkrug’s late effort at Signal Iduna Park before Croatia defender Stanisic headed them level in the seventh minute of added time.
Third-placed Stuttgart’s 11-game unbeaten league run was halted in a 2-1 defeat at mid-table Werder Bremen.
In Serie A, Atalanta climbed back up to sixth place with a 2-1 win at Monza, with Charles De Ketelaere and El Bilal Toure on target before Daniel Maldini’s late consolation for the hosts.
Paris St Germain moved 11 points clear at the top of Ligue 1 after a convincing 4-1 home win against Lyon, in which Goncalo Ramos fired a double with all five goals scored before the interval.
Third-placed Brest slipped to back-to-back defeats, with their bid for a top-three finish faltering after a 2-0 home defeat to Monaco.
Denis Zakaria and Takumi Minamino scored either side of half-time for Monaco, who had Eliesse Ben Seghir and Wilfried Singo sent off in added time, both for violent conduct.
Lille maintained their Champions League challenge, bouncing back from their Europa Conference League exit at the hands of Aston Villa by beating Strasbourg 1-0 at home.
Jonathan David struck early in the first half to lift Lille one point behind Brest with a game in hand.
Courtois to make first start this season as Madrid close in on title
Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois will make his first start of the season against Cadiz on Saturday after making a full recovery from two knee injuries, Carlo Ancelotti has revealed.
Ancelotti, however, will remain cautious with Courtois, who has not played since suffering torn ligaments 13 months ago, with Andriy Lunin set to return for Wednesday's Champions League semi-final second leg against Bayern Munich.
"The decisive game we have in mind, a final, is Wednesday's match against Bayern, where Lunin will play. After that, we'll see what happens," Ancelotti said on Friday.
"Courtois is fine, he will play tomorrow after a long, long time. It's good news that he's coming back, just like [Eder] Militao.
"Courtois can contribute, he's feeling good, he's very excited. We are delighted to have him back."
Lunin has established himself as Ancelotti's preferred deputy in Courtois' absence, seeing off competition from Kepa Arrizabalaga.
Lunin was Madrid's hero as they beat Manchester City in the Champions League quarter-finals, making two saves in their 4-3 penalty shoot-out victory after an inspired performance in a 1-1 second-leg draw.
Courtois, however, is widely considered to be one of the world's best goalkeepers and the Belgian is likely to regain his starting spot soon, with a LaLiga and Champions League double in Madrid's sights.
He was named man-of-the-match in the 2022 Champions League final after making nine saves to deny Liverpool as Madrid clinched a record-extending 14th European title with a 1-0 win in Paris.
Brazil centre-back Militao returned in late March after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in August, making his first start in last week's win at Real Sociedad in LaLiga.
"We were too passive against Bayern. We have to be more active. So Militao will play tomorrow to get into a rhythm," Ancelotti said.
"We are only thinking about the 'final' on Wednesday. We don't think about what might happen in a month's time. Hopefully, soon we can start looking further ahead, it will mean we'll make the final in London."
With five games left, Ancelotti's side top the LaLiga standings on 84 points, 11 ahead of Barca and 13 clear of third-placed Girona. They can clinch a record-extending 36th Spanish title if they beat Cadiz and Barcelona fail to win at Girona later on Saturday.
Girona to give '200 per cent' against Barcelona in possible Champions League clincher
Barcelona will be favourites when they visit Girona on Saturday, but Michel says the hosts will give everything in a game which could see them confirm Champions League qualification.
Girona, third in LaLiga with 71 points, are two behind fellow Catalan side Barcelona, who they beat 4-2 in December's return fixture.
"For our fans, tomorrow is a historic match," Michel told reporters on Friday.
"In this match the motivation is top for everyone. Another challenge is to beat Barca for the first time at Montilivi.
"Barca are favourites in this match, but we are playing at home in front of our fans. We will give 200 per cent because it's the only way to win."
Girona, 13 points ahead of fifth-placed Athletic Bilbao, are looking to ensure a top-four finish and secure qualification for the Champions League this weekend.
Athletic go to Getafe on Friday, so a defeat for Ernesto Valverde's team will confirm Girona's place in the top four before they take to the field.
"We want to win tomorrow to reach the Champions League. It's about making Girona grow and achieving worldwide recognition for our club and our project," Michel said.
"We always have more objectives like overtaking Real Madrid as the top-scoring team. We only have two goals between us.
"What I want is to be protagonists in a league where Madrid have lost only one game."
Xavi: Barcelona are out for revenge against Girona
Barcelona take on Girona in the Catalan derby this weekend and will be out to avenge their defeat from earlier this season as both sides battle for second place in LaLiga, says Xavi.
Girona won 4-2 in Barcelona when the teams met in December, which put Michel's side top of the standings.
Although Real Madrid now look set to win the title and Barca have moved into second, Xavi still wants payback against their neighbours in this away clash.
"There is no challenge with Michel, but there is a challenge of revenge for the first half of the season," Barca boss Xavi said at his pre-match press conference.
"They were very forceful, we didn't adjust well, we didn't defend well in the box. It's not a personal challenge but as a team."
Girona, the season's surprise package, come into Saturday's home game on the back of two wins, and a victory would see them leapfrog Barca and move into second place as they look to secure Champions League football for the first time.
"A vital match. Their confidence is through the roof," Xavi said.
"We have to congratulate them, their season is magnificent, at an extraordinary level, Champions League level.
"We were bad in defending their team in the home game, but these are situations that we have analysed."
Girona have a 13-point advantage over Athletic Bilbao who are fifth, and their Champions League place will already be safe by the time they face Barcelona if Bilbao lose at Getafe on Friday.
"It's not going to change much, they'll go out to win, they want to be second and there is a lot more at stake," Xavi said.
"Their mentality will not change even if Athletic fails. We're up against a team that has done a lot of good things to get to where it is. They'll be second if they deserve it.
"It is a source of pride for Catalan football that Girona are in the Champions League and have also been candidates to win the title."
Barcelona, meanwhile, can keep their slim title hopes mathematically alive with a victory, although the coach spoke only of the importance of finishing second, while refusing to speak of the future.
Last week, Xavi reversed his decision to leave the club at the end of the season, but he is concentrating on the present, and that also goes for the future of players such as Robert Lewandowski.
"We value Robert's presence in the team very much and we will decide on his future at the end of the season," Xavi said.
"This is not the time to talk about futures, we are playing for second place."
Real Madrid, who host Cadiz on Saturday, are top with 84 points and have five games remaining. Barcelona have 73 and Girona are on 71 points.
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