MADRID, June 26 (Xinhua) -- FC Barcelona needs to win a tricky away game in the 32nd round of matches, which starts on Friday if they are to keep in touch with Real Madrid in the race for the La Liga title.
Although the two sides are separated only by goal difference, Madrid has looked more reliable than Quique Setien's men, who were held to a 0-0 draw a week ago in Sevilla and were slightly fortunate to beat a stubborn Athletic Club Bilbao thanks to solitary Ivan Rakitic goal on Tuesday night.
Barcelona visits Celta Vigo on Saturday afternoon to face a rival with sky-high morale after a 6-0 win at home to Alaves, and a 1-0 victory away to Real Sociedad lifted them seven points clear of the bottom three with seven games left to play.
The side coached by former Barca player Oscar Garcia has rediscovered the attacking football that their squad should have been playing more often, and with Barca at times looking flat, Celta will be thinking of sealing their survival with another win.
Leo Messi, who was lucky not to be sent off against Athletic, will again lead the attack, and Ansu Fati could also start after he impressed, and Antoine Griezmann failed to make an impact yet again in midweek.
The round of matches kicks off in what is likely to be a sweltering Sanchez Pizjuan Stadium on Friday night as fourth-place Sevilla play Valladolid, whose eight-point cushion over third from bottom Mallorca should mean they are relatively safe.
Mallorca visits Athletic Club's San Mames Stadium on Saturday lunchtime six points from safety and needing to end a run of six consecutive defeats away to the Basque side, which still has an outside chance of a top-seven finish.
Leganes are another team with no option but to win as Javier Aguirre takes them to play Osasuna, one of his former clubs. Losing striker Martin Braithwaite in January has left Leganes struggling to score goals. After winning away to Alaves in midweek, a win for Osasuna will ensure their survival with six games still to play.
The defeat to Osasuna on Wednesday night left Alaves with work to do, but they will be lucky to take anything from their visit to face Atletico Madrid on Saturday night. Atletico has taken 10 points from a possible 12 since the return of football in Spain, and another three points would tighten their grip on the top-four finish that is so important to the club's economy.
Sunday starts with another game likely to be influenced by the heat when Levante and Betis face each other. Betis sacked coach Rubi a week ago and responded with a 1-0 win over Espanyol on Thursday night, which means tired legs could be a factor in this match.
Eibar's win at home to Valencia on Thursday gave them a six-point gap over third from bottom Mallorca ahead of their trip to Granada, while Sunday ends with Real Madrid visiting bottom of the table Espanyol, whose chances of avoiding relegation look slimmer by the game.
Real Madrid traditionally does well against Espanyol, and anything other than three points would be the shock of the weekend.
The round of games finishes on Monday as Getafe entertain Real Sociedad in a match between two sides whose form has deserted them since getting back into action with Getafe suffering a defeat and drawing against three teams they might have expected to beat. In contrast, Real Sociedad has only one point from a possible 12. Enditem
