- Willian José - 10'
- Luis Suárez - 6'
- Neymar - 39'
Neymar and Luis Suarez score as Barcelona beat Las Palmas
Barcelona survived a late onslaught to beat Las Palmas and remain in the driving seat at the top of the Primera Division.
Luis Suarez opened the scoring within just five minutes of kick-off, finishing off a wonderful one-touch move involving Andres Iniesta and Jordi Alba, but just moments later Willian Jose levelled for the struggling hosts.
Neymar restored Barca's lead shortly before half-time, but Las Palmas kept their heads up and missed four chances to prevent the visitors running out 2-1 winners.
The Catalans stretch their unbeaten run in all competitions to 32 matches and pick up a seventh straight league win, keeping them clear of title contenders Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid.
Luis Enrique made surprisingly few changes given his team have a Champions League match at Arsenal on Tuesday, only choosing to rest Gerard Pique.
The relegation-threatened hosts ceded possession to Barca early on and sought to hit them on the break, while sticking close to Neymar.
But Barcelona exploited these tactics, with the Brazilian drawing two defenders and quickly giving it to Iniesta.
He glided through midfield unopposed and played a simple ball down to Alba, who rolled the ball across for Suarez to tap in at the far post.
While Alba was one of the creators, he was at fault for Las Palmas' swift equaliser by not pushing up enough.
Willian Jose was played onside as a result and the Brazilian latched onto Jonathan Viera's back heel and fired low into the far corner.
The hosts nearly took the lead just a few minutes later as Momo raced onto another fine pass by Viera, but Javier Mascherano slid across to put off the midfielder and his shot flew over.
Barcelona kept trying to regain their lead, though, with Iniesta shooting straight at Javi Varas and Suarez sending a free header wide of the near post.
They enjoyed a slice of luck when they did eventually score, with replays showing Suarez was marginally offside when he received a pass down the right-hand side.
But the Uruguayan combined guile and composure to fight off a defender and then round another by the byline, with his cutback reaching Messi. His shot was well saved by Varas, but Neymar was there to knock the rebound in.
Suarez missed another clear chance early in the second half, shooting straight at Varas from the near post after a cushioned header from Dani Alves.
At the other end, Viera forced Claudio Bravo to dive low and Willian Jose was offside when he got to the rebound, hitting the side netting anyway.
The final half an hour was anything but comfortable for Barcelona and former academy player Sergio Araujo spurned three chances after coming off the bench, failing to hit the target each time.
Game Information
Spanish LALIGA Standings
Team | GP | W | D | L | GD | P |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Atlético Madrid | 18 | 12 | 5 | 1 | +21 | 41 |
Real Madrid | 18 | 12 | 4 | 2 | +23 | 40 |
Barcelona | 19 | 12 | 2 | 5 | +29 | 38 |
Athletic Club | 19 | 10 | 6 | 3 | +12 | 36 |
Villarreal | 18 | 8 | 6 | 4 | +4 | 30 |
Mallorca | 19 | 9 | 3 | 7 | -2 | 30 |
Real Sociedad | 18 | 7 | 4 | 7 | +3 | 25 |
Girona | 18 | 7 | 4 | 7 | +1 | 25 |
Real Betis | 18 | 6 | 7 | 5 | -1 | 25 |
Osasuna | 18 | 6 | 7 | 5 | -4 | 25 |
Celta Vigo | 18 | 7 | 3 | 8 | -1 | 24 |
Rayo Vallecano | 18 | 5 | 7 | 6 | -1 | 22 |
Las Palmas | 18 | 6 | 4 | 8 | -4 | 22 |
Sevilla | 18 | 6 | 4 | 8 | -7 | 22 |
Leganés | 18 | 4 | 6 | 8 | -11 | 18 |
Alavés | 18 | 4 | 5 | 9 | -9 | 17 |
Getafe | 18 | 3 | 7 | 8 | -4 | 16 |
Espanyol | 18 | 4 | 3 | 11 | -14 | 15 |
Valencia | 17 | 2 | 6 | 9 | -10 | 12 |
Real Valladolid | 18 | 3 | 3 | 12 | -25 | 12 |