Barcelona took advantage of Real Madrid dropping points to extend their lead at the top of the Primera Liga to six points with a 2-0 win over Athletic Bilbao.
Sergio Busquets opened the scoring at the Nou Camp in the 18th minute and Leo Messi added a second from the penalty spot just after the half-hour mark.
Barcelona had seen their 12-point advantage over Madrid shrink to just four following a draw and two defeats in their previous three league matches.
But Real's title hopes suffered a blow as they could only manage a 1-1 draw at home to Madrid rivals Atletico.
Diego Forlan put Atletico, who a week ago dented Barcelona's title charge with a 4-3 victory over the pacesetters, in front in the 38th minute.
Klaas-Jan Huntelaar leveled in the 57th minute.
Elsewhere, Espanyol slipped a step closer to relegation as they went down 1-0 at Villarreal.
Fabricio Fuentes scored the only goal of the game for the hosts after 20 minutes to leave Espanyol six points from safety.
