Real Sociedad 2-0 Sevilla

Carlos Vela starred for Real Sociedad as they ensured Michel's tenure as Sevilla coach began as Marcelino Garcia's ended.

Michel was appointed last week after Garcia was sacked following their 2-1 loss to Villarreal, and he saw his new charges fall behind to Vela's 64th-minute strike.

The on-loan Arsenal man then set up Ruben Pardo for his side's second four minutes later as they leapt above their opponents in La Liga.

Former Real Madrid star Michel must now ponder a relegation battle with Sevilla three points above the drop zone following three straight defeats.

Vela gave warning of what was to come in the 13th minute when he hit the post from inside the area.

And it was Sociedad making much of the running as Xabi Prieto nodded Pardo's corner wide from six yards and Imanol Agirretxe's header was held by Andres Palop.

Pardo fired wide, before Alvaro Negredo sent a rare Sevilla chance over the bar from 12 yards on the half-hour mark.

Manu was also wasteful for the visitors, but it was Vela who again had them worried when Palop produced an excellent save four minutes before the break to keep out the Mexican's close-range strike.

Sevilla came out looking livelier after the break, perhaps after some choice words from their new boss, with Jesus Navas and Negredo both missing chances.

But Sociedad deservedly went ahead just after the hour when Vela latched on to Prieto's cross from the left and fired home.

Vela then turned provider as his pass found Pardo to finish from 20 yards.

That all but killed Sevilla off and, indeed, it was Sociedad who went closest to adding to their tally when Antoine Griezmann's strike was saved by the feet of Palop.

Tevez rejects talk of Messi rift

Manchester City striker Carlos Tevez has hit out at rumours suggesting he has a poor relationship with Argentinean team-mate Lionel Messi.

Media reports in Argentina had claimed that the City player does not get along with the Barcelona star because of their differing personalities.

"Here people say that it is either Tevez or Messi and it does not have to be like that, because I get on great with the dwarf", Tevez told Fox Sports.

"Those people are wrong, he is a kid who does not talk much and I do not like when people say that we do not get on. I have a good relationship with him.

"It is easy to play with him. How could it be any different? If he has the ball, he has three players marking him. He is the greatest."

Tevez is on his way back to England after his self-imposed exile from Manchester following his well documented fallout with club manager Roberto Mancini at the end of September. Tevez is no stranger to controversy though and he revealed that he almost did not play in the Copa America last summer because of a bust-up with then Argentina coach Sergio Batista.

"I called Messi to ask him for a shirt for my charity foundation," Tevez said.

"Then he asked me why I was not called up. I told him that when Batista travelled to Manchester, he did so to speak with [Pablo] Zabaleta, and not me.

"Messi then told me to speak with the Argentine FA, and that is what I did. I spoke with Jose Luis Brown and Alberto Rodriguez and they told me that I was not going to play the Copa America and that I should keep working for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

"I told them that if I was not going to play the Copa America, I was not going to play the World Cup either. Then Batista called me and we solved everything."

The Argentinian Football Association terminated the contract of the Albicelestes' coach Sergio Batista at the end of July after a disappointing Copa America campaign.

Hosts Argentina were eliminated in the quarter-finals by eventual champions Uruguay.

Sporting chance for Clemente

Sporting Gijon have appointed former Spain boss Javier Clemente as their coach until the end of the season.

Clemente takes over from Inaki Tejada, who was placed in temporary charge of the relegation-threatened Primera Division side following the departure of Manuel Preciado.

A brief statement on the Sporting website read: "Javier Clemente is the new coach of Sporting until June 30. He will be presented on Tuesday."

Clemente was in charge of Spain between 1992 and 1998, but his last role was as coach of Cameroon.

Sporting lie second bottom of the table, six points from safety, and lost 4-0 at Valencia in their last game.

Mourinho: Cristiano's goal was incredible

Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho has hailed the "incredible" goal scored by Cristiano Ronaldo during the team's win over Levante.

The winger's goal was the four thousandth strike at the Bernabeu, and Mourinho believes that there could not have been a hit more worthy of the honour.

"Cristiano Ronaldo's goal was incredible, fantastic, and I believe it will go around the world during the next few weeks. The entire team feels so and it was a special strike for Cristiano." the manager told realmadridcf.com

"It was the 4,000th strike at the Bernabeu and he deserves it."

The goal was one of four that gave Real Madrid an easy victory over Levante, moving the club ten points clear at the top of La Liga. Although, the double digit lead might be comforting for some, Mourinho still feels that there is much work to be done. 

"There are many points still at stake and many games yet to be played. Every match is difficult and increasingly so because there is so much at stake for everyone now." he said.

"There are 39 points left, which translate into 13 victories, and that's still a lot. Ten points are just that, but they do give you some room for error. Losing a game won't push us into a decisive situation."

The Portuguese manager also reiterated the importance of winning home games to counter possible away losses.

"We'll play complicated games on the road, but we're proving it's also hard to win against us here." Mourinho stated.

"Levante were very well organised from a tactical standpoint. We have to continue winning games because championships are won only when the math says so."

Despite numerous media reports declaring the title race over, the Los Blancos coach remains wary of doing the same.

"I don't want to comment on what the press says because its interests are different from ours." he said.

"I tell my players that those who say the championship is over are the same who put pressure on us when we don't win."

Mourinho knows that the team need to stay focused throughout the ninety minutes of each game, if Real Madrid are to continue their good run of form and keep themselves at the top of the La Liga podium. 

"We're very confident but may lack concentration at the start of our games. We're giving strong performances in the second halves we play at home." the Portuguese coach shared.

"We have many chances on target and we usually score, but we would have lost 1-0 by half-time had we not scored on the 44-minute mark. We have to improve on that because the day will come in which we'll miss."

Real Madrid host relegation-threatened Racing Santander this Saturday in what is expected to be an easy three points for Mourinho's men.

Malaga 3-1 Mallorca

Malaga climbed to seventh in the La Liga after beating Real Mallorca 3-1 at La Rosaleda stadium.

Michael Pereira put the visitors ahead with the game less than four minutes old but Seba Fernandez equalised soon after for Malaga.

Jeremy Toulalan then put the hosts in front in the second half and Salomon Rondon extended his team's advantage with 23 minutes remaining.

Mallorca could not find a way back as Malaga held on for their ninth victory of the season.

The result has allowed Manuel Pellegrini's men to bounce back from last Monday's 2-1 loss at Granada and left them just one point behind fourth-placed Levante, who hold the last Champions League qualifying spot.

Mallorca are in 14th place following their ninth defeat of the campaign.

The Andalusian side dominated the opening stages but Mallorca went in front when Pereira's 30-yard free-kick towards the far post beat Malaga goalkeeper Wilfredo Caballero.

Mallorca goalkeeper Dudu Aouate was unable to hold onto Rondon's hard drive from the edge of the area and Fernandez got the easy tap-in to level things up a short time later.

Malaga struggled to break Mallorca's well-placed defence, yet when they did before the interval, Santi Cazorla nodded Nacho Monreal's cross off target from a good position.

The hosts were rewarded for their efforts in the 54th minute.

Mallorca cleared a corner kick only as far as Toulalan and his right-footed strike from outside the area beat Aouate.

Aouate then made two vital saves to clear Isco and Sergio Sanchez's attempts on goal to keep his team in the game.

But there was little the goalkeeper could do to deny Malaga's third.

Sergio Sanchez fed an unmarked Rondon at the heart of the area and his well-struck effort went underneath the goalkeeper.

Malaga controlled the final stages of the game to seal three valuable points as they maintained their hunt for Champions League football next season.

Valencia 4-0 Sporting Gijon

Valencia strengthened their grip on third place in La Liga with an easy victory over relegation-battling Sporting Gijon.

Sofiane Feghouli put the hosts ahead in the 33rd minute, and an Alberto Botia own goal with 17 minutes left made certain of the points.

Valencia then added plenty of gloss to the scoreline as Jonas Oliveira scored twice in injury-time.

It was little more than Valencia deserved as they faced little threat from the visitors and dominated a match which might have seen them score many more had Aritz Aduriz brought his shooting boots.

Aduriz had his first of several misses in only the third minute, turning a good chance over the bar when he met David Albelda's cross on the volley from close range.

Then, in the 10th minute, his header was too high from Luis Miguel's cross.

A rare Sporting foray forward produced a good save from Vicente Guaita in the 15th minute as he tipped Miguel De las Cuevas' shot over for a corner.

Aduriz squandered another chance soon after, getting on to Albelda's cross but sending a close-range effort wide.

The breakthrough came in the 33rd minute, with Jeremy Mathieu teeing up Feghouli for a left-footed finish.

Aduriz then missed with another chance as he watched a mis-hit shot dribble wide in first-half stoppage time.

Tino Costa began the second half with a powerful shot from range that stung the palms of Juan Pablo Colinas, and luckily for the goalkeeper the rebound fell to Aduriz, who dutifully sent a follow-up shot wide.

Roberto Soldado's shot struck the wall following an indirect free-kick after Colinas handed Botia's backpass.

But Botia's luck turned sour again soon after as he inadvertently turned in Feghouli's shot for an own goal.

Adrian Colunga Perez had a late chance for Sporting but it was the hosts who would enjoy a flurry at the finish, with Oliveira heading home from Adil Rami's delivery before grabbing Valencia's fourth with a 93rd-minute strike.

Rayo Vallecano 2-0 Getafe

Michu and Diego Costa scored either side of half-time as Rayo eased to a derby victory over Getafe.

Both teams struggled with the freezing conditions early on but the hosts took control of the game on 33 minutes as Michu prodded home at the second attempt after Miguel Angel Moya had saved his first header.

The visitors were then reduced to 10 men 16 minutes after the break when Michel was somewhat harshly shown a straight red card for a late challenge on Costa. And the Brazilian sealed the victory three minutes later as he nipped ahead of Moya to head in Jose Luis Movilla's cross.

Movilla had claimed earlier in the week that the pitch at Vallecas was not conducive to his side's passing style of play and neither team were able to find their rhythm in a stop-start first-half.

Piti was denied by a combination of Moya and Cata Diaz as he tried to lob the keeper when played through on eight minutes and the keeper again did well to parry a fierce shot from an angle by Costa before Michu put the rebound over.

The opener arrived just after the half hour though as poor marking from the visitors allowed Michu a free header inside the area and after Moya had done well to repel his first effort, the midfielder had the easy task of slotting into an empty net for his 11th goal of the season.

Things only got worse for Getafe early in the second period as Michel was giving his marching orders and a series of slack passes out from the back were eventually punished as Movilla's ball in from the right found Costa free to head in his second goal in two games since joining on loan from Atletico Madrid.

Costa should have made it three moments later but steered his shot just wide when clean through on Moya. However it mattered little as a second straight win takes Rayo above Getafe and into the top-half of the table.

Villarreal 3-1 Granada

Villarreal were made to work hard for a vital win over fellow La Liga strugglers Granada.

Marco Ruben's 16th-minute strike gave the home side a half-time lead against the run of play, but Inigo Lopez levelled with a header five minutes after half-time.

Borja Valero restored Villarreal's lead, though before Granada goalkeeper Julio Cesar diverted Joan Oriol's cross into his own goal to end his side's hopes of a comeback.

Granada twice went close in the early stages, Mikel Rico and Jude Ighalo heading wide in a lively start for the visitors.

But they fell behind when Ruben Cani played in Ruben, whose angled strike found the top corner of the net.

The away side continued to press and Mikel Rico was off target from long range before Inigo Lopez headed against the post, with Ighalo offside from the rebound.

Home keeper Diego Lopez fielded Carlos Martins' 25-yard drive before Nilmar threatened at the other end, but his shot was parried by Julio Cesar.

Ighalo shot wide from six yards early in the second period before Villarreal threatened, Borja Valero drawing a save from Julio Cesar.

The equaliser came two minutes later, Inigo Lopez meeting Carlos Martins' corner with a downward header from 12 yards which beat Diego Lopez.

The home keeper had to be alert on the hour when he scrambled back to turn Mikel Rico's audacious free-kick around the post, before holding Daniel Benitez's drive moments later.

Villarreal were ahead once more in the 64th minute when Borja latched onto Javier Camunas' pass and produced a near replica of team-mate Ruben's earlier finish.

They took control from that point and immediately went in search of a third, Camunas stinging the keeper's palms before Gonzalo Castellani shot over.

In the end, the goal came in curious circumstances when Oriol crossed and Julio Cesar dived out of his goal, only to punch the ball behind him and into the net.

Castellani curled an effort over the bar from 20 yards and Hernan Perez was denied by Julio Cesar in stoppage time.

Real Sociedad vs Sevilla Preview

New Sevilla coach Michel is convinced the club have the potential to do well this season as he prepares for his first test at Real Sociedad on Monday.

The former Real Madrid star took the reins of the Andalusian outfit earlier this week from Marcelino Garcia, who was sacked after last weekend's 2-1 loss to Villarreal.

Sevilla have not won in their last seven La Liga games and go into the clash at the Anoeta stadium on the back of two straight defeats.

Despite the team's poor run of form, the former Getafe tactician is convinced he can turn things around.

"I see a responsible team and I am confident we will achieve the club's aims this season," Michel said.

"Our first step is to win in San Sebastian on Monday.

"We have several good players in the team and I will demand the maximum from them."

Michel knows his side will be put to the test by Real Sociedad.

"Real Sociedad have very good players and we must stop them from playing their game," he said.

"We are the ones that have to take control from the start and make life difficult for our rivals."

The Basque outfit lost 2-1 at Barcelona having previously thrashed Sporting Gijon 5-1. They are just two points behind Sevilla heading into Monday's game.

"I expect a very combative game," Real Sociedad coach Philippe Montanier said.

"Both teams are in need of points and each side will go out determined to get a crucial win."

Montanier hopes to recover strikers Diego Ifran and Antoine Griezmann in time for Monday's game with both players doubtful with minor injuries.

Real Madrid 4-2 Levante

Cristiano Ronaldo struck a brilliant hat-trick as Real Madrid moved 10 points clear at the La Liga summit with a thumping victory over 10-man Levante.

Jose Mourinho's men took full advantage of Barcelona's defeat at Osasuna on Saturday night to move into a commanding position in the title race.

Gustavo Cabral headed Levante into a surprise early lead, but the 43rd-minute dismissal of Vicente Iborra, who picked up a second booking for handling in the area, swung the game in the hosts' favour.

Ronaldo opened his account from the resulting spot-kick before adding another five minutes into the second half and completing his treble with a wonderful long-range effort on 57 minutes.

Arouna Kone pulled it back to 3-2 with a header after 63 minutes but Madrid restored their two-goal cushion when Karim Benzema curled home an exquisite fourth.

Coming into  Sunday night's match Levante could claim to be the only team other than Barca to have inflicted defeat on Mourinho's men this season, and arrived looking to do an unlikely double against the leaders.

And with just five minutes on the clock the visitors stunned the Bernabeu with the opening goal.

The breakthrough came from a set-piece after Sergio Ramos fouled El Zhar. When Francisco Farinos swung over a dangerous free-kick Ramos was again involved as his attempted header clear fell perfectly for Cabral, who jumped with split-second timing to nod powerfully home.

Minutes later Benzema had a goal chalked off for offside, although replays suggested that Gonzalo Higuain, who was ruled to have touched the ball on to the Frenchman, did not actually make contact, although nobody in the Madrid ranks took issue with the decision.

Levante looked like reaching the break with their lead intact as the visitors stifled the hosts' threat thereafter, but that changed two minutes from the break when they were reduced to 10 men when Iborra handled in the area.

Iborra had already been booked for a foul on Benzema in the 37th minute, so when he handled the ball as he attempted to head clear in the area, the referee applied the letter of the law and issued a second yellow.

Ronaldo stepped up to take the resulting spot-kick, and duly fired high to the goalkeeper's left.

The second half was always going to be a long one for Levante with their numerical disadvantage and so it proved as Mourinho's men moved seamlessly through the gears.

Ronaldo's second arrived on 50 minutes when Higuain crossed from the right and the Portuguese rose amid two static defenders to head home.

And the dynamic forward completed his treble seven minutes later with a strike that was as spectacular as his first two had been routine, picking the ball up on the left and cutting inside before unleashing a dipping 30-yard drive beyond the helpless Gustavo Munua.

Higuain saw a goal correctly ruled out for offside on the hour as Madrid poured forward, but their progress was checked against the run of play on 63 minutes when Oscar Serrano crossed for Kone to head home from close range for 3-2.

But the visiting side's hopes were extinguished just three minutes later when Ronaldo played in Benzema, who cut inside his marker and curled a delightful effort inside the far post.

Ronaldo, Benzema and Mezut Ozil all missed gilt-edged chances to add to the scoring in what time remained, but the Levante goal was spared further punishment.

Ronaldo treble puts Real ten clear

Cristiano Ronaldo hit a brilliant hat-trick as Real Madrid moved 10 points clear at the La Liga summit with a 4-2 victory over 10-man Levante.

Jose Mourinho's men took full advantage of Barcelona's defeat at Osasuna on Saturday night to move into a commanding position in the title race.

Gustavo Cabral headed Levante into a surprise early lead but the 43rd-minute dismissal of Vicente Iborra, who picked up a second booking for handling in the area, swung the game in the hosts' favour.

Ronaldo opened his account from the resulting spot-kick before adding another five minutes into the second half and completing his treble with a dipping long-range effort on 57 minutes.

Arouna Kone pulled it back to 3-2 with a header after 63 minutes but Madrid restored their two-goal cushion when Karim Benzema curled home an exquisite fourth three minutes later.

Valencia strengthened their grip on third place with a 4-0 victory over relegation-battling Sporting Gijon.

Sofiane Feghouli put the hosts ahead in the 33rd minute and an Alberto Botia own goal with 17 minutes left made certain of the points. Valencia added gloss to the scoreline as Jonas Oliveira scored twice in injury time.

Malaga climbed to seventh after beating Real Mallorca 3-1 at La Rosaleda stadium.

Michael Pereira put the visitors ahead with the game less than four minutes old but Seba Fernandez equalised soon after for Malaga.

Jeremy Toulalan then put the hosts in front in the second half and Salomon Rondon extended his team's advantage with 23 minutes remaining.

Villarreal were made to work hard for a vital 3-1 win over fellow strugglers Granada.

Marco Ruben's 16th-minute strike gave the home side a half-time lead against the run of play, but Inigo Lopez levelled with a header five minutes after the break.

Borja Valero restored Villarreal's lead, though, before Granada goalkeeper Julio Cesar diverted Joan Oriol's cross into his own goal to end his side's hopes of a comeback.

Michu and Diego Costa scored either side of half-time as Rayo Vallecano eased to a 2-0 derby victory over Getafe, while second-half goals from Paulo da Silva and Juan Carlos were enough to hand Real Zaragoza their first win since October 16, 2-0 at Espanyol.

Barcelona were on the receiving end of a shock 3-2 defeat to Osasuna at Estadio Reyno de Navarra on Saturday evening.

Dejan Lekic scored twice to put the home side 2-0 up at the break, only to see Alexis Sanchez pull one back for Barca in the 51st minute.

Raul Garcia made it 3-1 five minutes later and although substitute Cristian Tello netted a second for Barca, Osasuna managed to hold on for the win.

Elsewhere, Nelson smashed home an injury-time winner for Real Betis in their 2-1 win overAthletic Bilbao, while Racing Santander and Atletico Madrid played out a 0-0 draw.

Monday's action sees Real Sociedad entertain Sevilla.

Sunday's La Liga Results

Espanyol 0-2 Real Zaragoza

Malaga 3-1 Real Mallorca

Rayo Vallecano 2-0 Getafe

Valencia 4-0 Sporting Gijon

Villarreal 3-1 Granada

Real Madrid 4-2 Levante

Saturday's La Liga Results

Osasuna 3-2 Barcelona

Racing Santander 0-0 Atletico Madrid

Real Betis 2-1 Athletic Bilbao

Monday's La Liga Fixtures

Real Sociedad vs Sevilla

Puyol: La Liga not a lost cause

Barcelona captain Carles Puyol has called on his teammates to use pride and professionalism as inspiration in the La Liga title fight.

The Spaniard stated that inferior pitch conditions and the extreme cold compounded Barcelona's poor first-half performance against Osasuna. 

"We knew it would be very cold, but the most important problem was the pitch. It took us a long time to get into the game." he told fcbarcelona.com

"It was hard to keep your feet, and that's what hurt us most, and took us a long time to adapt to."

Despite losing to the home side in that fixture, Puyol believes no one at the club is giving up the La Liga battle just yet. 

"Clearly we're not happy with the match at Osasuna, but the League is not lost yet." he said.

"We must be realistic and accept that it's complicated, but if this team has anything, it's that we will not give up, and we'll fight to the end."

He is aware that Los Cules are currently in an unfamiliar position, having become used to leading the league by a number of points in past seasons. However, the central defender insisted that the team's mentality remains unchanged.

"Before, we were in front and we were forced to keep winning win because they were close behind. Now we must try to win, to put pressure on them to do the same." he stated.

Puyol maintains that Barcelona's focus is on themselves, despite the knowledge that the team are now dependent on rivals Real Madrid to slip up in order to close up the points gap. The difference now stands at 10 points, after Real Madrid recorded a 4-2 win over Levante in their latest fixture.

Welcoming Valencia to the Camp Nou is next on the Catalans' agenda, in what could possibly be another tricky fixture for them.

Emery: Top-four finish will be tough

Despite Sunday's 4-0 win over Sporting Gijon, Valencia coach Unai Emery insists it will be difficult for his side to finish in the top four of La Liga.

Sunday's defeat of Sporting saw Valencia end a poor run of form after four draws and a loss in their last five league games, and also helped them move eight points clear of fourth-placed Levante.

Now eighteen points behind league leaders Real Madrid and eight behind Barcelona, any hope Valencia had of ending their more illustrious rivals' grip on the La Liga crown is all but over.

And while qualifying for the Champions League has always been a more realistic aim for Los Che, Emery insists it will not be easy for his charges to finish in the top four this season.

"It will be hard for us to stay in the Champions League places," Emery said in his post-match press conference.

"Winning this league is very hard and we are not at the same level as Real Madrid or Barcelona, it is very hard for us to beat everyone."

Sofiane Feghouli gave Valencia the lead in the 34th minute on Sunday evening, before an Alberto Botia own goal in the 73rd minute put the result beyond doubt.

Jonas then grabbed an injury-time brace to cap off a good night for Los Che, and Emery admitted he was pleased with the overall result.

"We knew that Sporting Gijon closed down very well and that the victory would depend on ourselves, on our capacity to break the deadlock," Emery added.

"After we were 1-0 up, the match was more open and that benefited everyone."

Valencia are back in La Liga action next Sunday when they travel to play Barcelona.

Racing Santander 0-0 Atletico Madrid

Atletico Madrid passed up a host of good opportunities as Racing Santander clung on to claim a La Liga point at El Sardinero.

The visitors had the best of a largely uneventful first half but Adrian Lopez passed up their best opportunity as he fired straight at Tono Ramirez.

The Racing keeper was busier after the break as he repelled efforts from Felipe Luis and Diego, whilst the latter and Radamel Falcao also struck the post.

Atleti have now gone six games under Diego Simeone without conceding but they will be disappointed with a second consecutive 0-0 draw from a game in which they were rarely troubled.

Felipe was first to threaten Tono's goal as his effort from just outside the area forced the keeper into a smart save before Adrian was presented with a clear sight of goal from Diego's inventive backheel, but the Spaniard's shot was smothered by Tono.

Adrian Gonzalez had Racing's best effort a minute into the second period but Thibaut Courtois comfortably held his powerful low effort and from then on Atleti completely dominated.

Felipe shot straight at Tono after being played in by another clever pass from Diego before the Brazilian playmaker should have done better himself when he struck the post following a quick exchange of passes with Arda Turan.

Falcao then wasted a glorious opportunity as Tono could only parry another Diego effort straight into the Colombian's path but he could only turn the ball against the outside of the post.

The Racing captain continued to frustrate Simeone's men in the final quarter as he made a wonderful save from Alvaro Dominguez's header and held onto Pizzi's rasping drive in the final action of the match.

The draw is enough to move Racing temporarily out of the relegation zone whilst Atleti close to within a point of Levante in fourth.

Mourinho wary of Real tricky month ahead

Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho believes the La Liga fixture list has dealt a trickier hand to his side than to Barcelona over the next month.

Furthermore, he will not be taking anything for granted when fourth-placed Levante visit the Bernabeu on Sunday night.

The Valencia-based outfit are the only team other than Barca to have inflicted defeat on Mourinho's men in any competition this season, and travel to the capital looking to do the double against the league leaders.

Madrid head into the weekend seven points clear at the summit - although champions Barcelona could reduce that at Osasuna on Saturday night - and Mourinho reckons the next few weeks will provide a tough test of his team's title credentials.

The Portuguese said at his pre-match press conference after training on Sunday: "We play Levante, who are fourth, then Rayo Vallecano, who have been a revelation this season, and Espanyol, who are fighting for a European spot.

"It's a complicated month for us, perhaps more for us than for our direct rivals."

Madrid also play relegation-threatened Racing Santander next weekend, while Barca take on Valencia, Atletico Madrid and Sporting Gijon after Saturday evening's game in Pamplona.

Arouna Kone's second-half strike earned Levante a surprise 1-0 win against Madrid at the Ciutat de Valencia in September, and Mourinho accepts Juan Ignacio Martinez's side deserve to be where they are.

He said: "Levante have their merits - not only to have won that game, but to be where they are in February - not in October or November. Everyone thought they would have slipped away by now.

"And they must finish there - between fourth and sixth position. Their work is impressive - the coach, the players and the club."

Mourinho is without the injured Hamit Altintop and Lassana Diarra for the match, while Marcelo and Angel Di Maria, who have also been sidelined with injuries of late, have been omitted from a 20-man squad.

Levante right-back Pedro Lopez, who has resumed training after missing out for two days earlier this week due to a cold, could feature but coach Martinez will be without Juanlu and Jose Javier Barkero through injury, with Juanfran (foot) also doubtful and Xavi Torres suspended.

Martinez knows his side have their work cut out trying to repeat their September success.

"They have moved on from that and have since won almost everything," the Levante coach said. "We must concentrate because they are able to score a goal from nothing."

Levante have not won in the league since beating Sevilla 1-0 on December 10, and Martinez hopes that statistic will give his side extra motivation for Sunday's game.

"We will go there looking to break the dynamic that we have had in recent weeks," he said. "That aspect will make us more competitive.

"We know that we will play against a team few teams have been able to match this season, but we also know that it is 11 against 11 on the night."

Osasuna 3-2 Barcelona

Osasuna dealt a further blow to Barcelona's La Liga title hopes at Estadio Reyno de Navarra on Saturday night.

Two goals from Dejan Lekic had the home side in control at half-time - but Alexis Sanchez pulled a goal back six minutes into the second half.

Raul Garcia made it 3-1 to the home side five minutes later but substitute Cristian Tello netted a second for Barcelona 17 minutes from the end.

There were several clear chances at both ends and a disallowed goal for the visitors - but Osasuna held on for victory to leave Barcelona still seven points adrift of leaders Real Madrid, who play Levante at home on Sunday.

It means Pep Guardiola's men have now dropped 16 points on their travels in the La Liga this season.

The home side were ahead in only the fifth minute when Lekic rolled in the opening goal, ending a neat spell of passing.

Lionel Messi saw an 11th-minute shot palmed over, but 11 minutes later the home side were two goals clear when Lekic got on the end of Alvaro Cejudo's cross from the right to convert from close range.

Messi shot weakly at goalkeeper Andres Fernandez in the 28th minute and 10 minutes later saw a shot blocked.

But Barcelona were back in the contest six minutes into the second half when Sanchez converted Isaac Cuenca's cross at the far post.

However, Osasuna restored their two-goal advantage five minutes later when Garcia poached a goal at the near post.

Substitute Tello kept Barcelona in the contest in the 73rd minute when he made it 3-2, cutting inside Francisco Nino and blasting past Fernandez with his left foot.

Francisco Punal struck the Barcelona post in the 78th minute and three minutes later Barca appeared to have equalised when Sanchez headed in from close range - but referee Jose Luis Paradas Romero ruled the effort out for offside, with Sergi Roberto adjudged to have glanced Messi's ball on before the Chilean finished the move off.

Sanchez was denied by the onrushing Fernandez in the 89th minute - and the visitors' final chance came and went in the fourth minute of stoppage time when Cesc Fabregas saw his close-range header, from Messi's ball, easily saved by Fernandez.

Real Betis 2-1 Athletic Bilbao

Right-back Nelson hammered an injury-time winner for Real Betis against 10-man Athletic Bilbao.

Nelson, playing his first La Liga match of the season and recently back from compassionate leave after his father died, drove the ball home from the edge of the box to seal the points for Betis, who moved up to 12th.

Ruben Castro had put Betis ahead in the 10th minute before Athletic levelled 13 minutes later through Javi Martinez, who was then harshly sent off in the 64th minute.

If the sending-off was tough on the Copa del Rey finalists, who would have moved into the Champions League places with a win, the scoreline was not as Betis were the better side throughout.

They took the lead early on when, after a neat passing move, the ball broke to Castro somewhat fortuitously on the left of the area and he produced a beautiful first-time curling strike into the far corner from an acute angle.

Athletic levelled when Markel Susaeta's outswinging corner found Martinez unmarked in the box and he stooped to head his side level.

Jefferson Montero went agonisingly close to putting Betis ahead again as the half drew to a close when he poked the ball against the bar after a great run and one-two with Jorge Molina.

And at the other end, moments before the whistle went, Inigo Perez's low shot through a crowd of players was well stopped by Fabricio.

Three minutes into the second half, Betis had the ball in the net again.

Etxebarria Benat played a lovely ball through to Castro, whose shot was deflected onto the bar by Gorka Iraizoz. The ball rebounded to Salva Sevilla who headed the ball home, but he was correctly adjudged to be in an offside position.

After 56 minutes, Susaeta produced a lovely chip into the box for Fernando Llorente, whose header was going in before Fabricio pushed it wide.

Sevilla headed wide after 62 minutes, but Betis were given a boost two minutes later when Martinez was sent off.

There seemed to be little in it when the defender tangled with Jonathan Pereira, but it was deemed enough for his second innocuous booking of the evening.

That left Betis in control and, though they dominated attacking possession, the closest they came was from Benat's deflected shot in the 84th minute, which was sneaking in at the near post before Iraizoz pushed it wide.

That was until stoppage time when Benat's corner was cleared only as far as Nelson, who hammered the bobbling ball past Iraizoz.

Osasuna dent Barca title hopes

Osasuna dealt a further blow to Barcelona's La Liga title hopes with a 3-2 win at Estadio Reyno de Navarra.

Two goals from Dejan Lekic had the home side in control at half-time - but Alexis Sanchez pulled a goal back six minutes into the second half.

Raul Garcia made it 3-1 to the home side five minutes later but substitute Cristian Tello netted a second for Barcelona 17 minutes from the end.

There were several clear chances at both ends and a disallowed goal for the visitors - butOsasuna held on for victory to leave Barcelona still seven points adrift of leaders Real Madrid, who play Levante at home on Sunday.

Right-back Nelson hammered an injury-time winner for Real Betis in a 2-1 victory against 10-manAthletic Bilbao.

Nelson, playing his first La Liga match of the season and recently back from compassionate leave after his father died, drove the ball home from the edge of the box to seal the points for Betis, who moved up to 12th.

Ruben Castro had put Betis ahead in the 10th minute before Athletic levelled 13 minutes later through Javi Martinez, who was then harshly sent off in the 64th minute.

The other match, between Racing Santander and Atletico Madrid, finished goalless.

Atleti have now gone six games under Diego Simeone without conceding but they will be disappointed with a second consecutive 0-0 draw from a game in which they were rarely troubled.

Saturday's La Liga Results

Osasuna 3-2 Barcelona

Racing Santander 0-0 Atletico Madrid

Real Betis 2-1 Athletic Bilbao

Sunday's La Liga Fixtures

Espanyol vs Real Zaragoza

Malaga vs Mallorca

Rayo Vallecano vs Getafe

Villarreal vs Granada

Valencia vs Sporting Gijon

Real Madrid vs Levante