Football
ESPN staff 7y

Messi, Neymar, Suarez score in Barca rout; Sevilla survive; Atleti draw

Lionel Messi helped Barcelona pull within two points of leaders Real Madrid after a  4-0 defeat of Eibar in La Liga action on Sunday.

Denis Suarez, Luis Suarez and Neymar also added goals to ensure a comfortable victory over a game Eibar side on the night.

And it was the former Suarez who opened the scoring after 31 minutes -- the former Villarreal midfielder latching onto a deflected Luis Suarez shot and firing low and hard past a stretching Yoel in the Eibar net.

Messi scored Barca's second five minutes after the break with a fine first-time finish of an inch-perfect ball from Luis Suarez just out of Yoel's reach.

The Uruguayan striker collected Barca's third by slotting past Yoel in a one-on-one situation behind the defence. And Neymar added the fourth in second-half-stoppage time to seal the points.

However the victory wasn't all good news for Luis Enriques's men, as Sergio Busquets was forced off in the first half with an ankle injury.

Sevilla secured a hard-fought 4-3 victory in a thrilling game at bottom club Osasuna, guaranteeing second place at the halfway point of the season.

Captain Vicente Iborra scored twice -- and also put through his own goal -- as Sevilla won their fifth game in a row to go just one point behind leaders Real Madrid.

Franco Vazquez and Pablo Sarabia were the other Sevilla scorers. Osasuna, now winless in 11 league games, twice had the lead through Sergio Leon and Iborra's own goal but fell to a 12th loss in 19 matches. Kenan Kodro scored their late third goal.

Real Madrid, who have a game in hand, had already ensured that they will be top at the halfway mark by beating Malaga 2-1 on Saturday at the Bernabeu.

Antoine Griezmann scored an 80th-minute equalizer as Atletico Madrid failed to extend their three-game winning streak, dropping further behind in the title race with a 2-2 draw against Athletic Bilbao.

Koke opened the scoring three minutes into the match at San Mames, but Inigo Lekue equalised just before half-time and Oscar de Marco put the hosts ahead in the 56th.

France international Griezmann then levelled with a remarkable low long-range shot to rescue the point.

Atletico are now in fourth place, eight points behind Madrid, while Bilbao remain seventh.

In Sunday's other matches, Sporting Gijon held Real Betis to a 0-0 draw at the Estadio Manuel Ruiz de Lopera, while Juanmi's 72nd minute strike helped Real Sociedad down Celta Vigo 1-0.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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