Barcelona exploits Madrid's stumble to open 8-point lead

Barcelona took advantage of Real Madrids stumble to kick off the second half of the season with another win and enjoy its biggest lead so far at the top of the Spanish leagueAfter Madrids 10 loss at Mallorca Barcelona extended its 10game winning streak in all competitions with a comfortable 30 victory over Sevilla on Sunday to open an eightpoint lead over Madrid after 20 of 38 roundsIt is the biggest lead by any team this season putting the Catalan club in firm control as it chases its first league title since 201819We are having a great season We have been playing well not giving many chances for our opponents Barcelona defender Jordi Alba said Its eight points Theres a lot of league left but its a good gapAlba Gavi and Raphinha scored a goal each in the second half to give Barcelona its fifth straight victory in the leagueThe last game Barcelona failed to win was a 11 league draw against Espanyol last yearSevilla which got off to a surprisingly awful start to the season was coming off two straight league wins that had helped it move further away from the relegation zone It dropped to 16th place with the loss two points from the drop zoneSevilla hasnt won in 15 league matches against Barcelona and in 20 straight visits to the Catalan clubBarcelona captain Sergio Busquets had to be replaced eight minutes into the match at Camp Nou with an apparent ankle sprainMADRID LOSESMarco Asensio missed a penalty kick in Madrids loss at Mallorca in its last match before traveling to Morocco to play at the Club World CupMadrid was depleted by injuries and rested some players ahead of the Club World CupAlso readDembeles goal moves Barcelona three clear in La LigaWe already expected a very tough match Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said We had our chances but couldnt take advantage of themAncelotti couldnt count on several injured starters including striker Karim Benzema defender Eacuteder Militatildeo and goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois who was dropped from the squad at the last minute after getting injured during the warmup Ancelotti also rested midfielders Toni Kroos and Luka Modric who came on in the second halfAsensio missed a chance to equalize when his 60thminute penalty kick was saved by Mallorca goalkeeper Pedrag Rajkovic after Madrid forward Viniacutecius Juacutenior had been fouled Madrids last chance was a header by Antonio Ruumldiger that went narrowly wide deep into stoppage timeThe hosts got on the board with an owngoal by Nacho Fernaacutendez who was replacing Militatildeo in defense Nacho went for a high cross and deflected the ball into his own net over goalkeeper Andriy Lunin who started in place of CourtoisI hit the ball with my head and unfortunately it went into the top corner Nacho said It was a complicated match against a team that is having a good season Its a pity that we let three points get awayMadrid was coming off a win against Valencia after being held by Real Sociedad Its opponent in the semifinals of the Club World Cup on Wednesday will be Egyptian club Al AhlyIt was the second win in three league matches for Mallorca and the fourth straight at home It remained midtable with 28 points from 20 matchesIts a good result moves us further away from the relegation zone Mallorcas Mexican coach Javier Aguirre said But there are many matches left we cant relaxViniacutecius was shown a yellow card and will be suspended for Madrids next league game against lastplace ElcheSOCIEDAD STALLSReal Sociedad missed a chance to move within three points of Madrid after losing 10 to Valladolid at homeIt was the third winless game for the Basque Country club after a ninegame winning streak in all competitions Sociedad was coming off a 10 loss to Barcelona in the quarterfinals of the Copa del Rey and a 00 draw at Madrid in the leagueNewly signed Canadian forward Cyle Larin scored a secondhalf winner for 13thplace Valladolid which has won two in a row after five straight losses in all competitionsSTRUGGLING VALENCIAValencias struggles continued with a 10 defeat at Girona a result that extended its losing streak to five matches in all competitionsValencia has only one win in its last 12 league matches and is sitting just outside the relegation zoneGirona moved to 11th placeThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever