Martin Lasarte's Errealas must pass through a test of fire this Sunday as they visit Barcelona at the Camp Nou. Pep Guardiola's boys have already been victim of a newly promoted squad at home this season and will to be perfectly focused to claim the three points.

Having lost two of the last three games, Joaquin Caparros' Athletic must be ready to face RCD Espanyol, one of the main revelations of the first part of La Liga this season. Mauricio Pochettino's boys have been unstoppable at home but have suffered when playing away, and San Mames will be without a doubt a major obstacle in their path to Europe.

Liga former leader Real Madrid visit Zaragoza and is likely to recover the top for a few hours as they wait for Barcelona's game.

Who'll be claiming the top by Monday? 

Villarreal must pay Michel's Azulones an awkward visit to kick off liga's 15th round. Juan Carlos Garrido will have to do without Italian international Giuseppe Rossi, but recovers Borja Valero to harmonize the attack.





Marco Ruben or Jozy Altidore are the main candidates to join Brazilian international Nilmar in the last meters of the field. 





Two consecutive victories have lifted the spirit of Getafe's players who are aware Villarreal is a direct rival in the fight for the upper half of the positions table. The hosts will be missing two key defensive players: Derek Boateng (he received his fifth yellow card in the last game) and Borja Fernandez, who seems to be struggling with injuries.





Things won't be much easier for the visitors, as Juan Oriol will be ruled out with injuries. Joan Capdevilla and Carlos Marchena, on the other hand, are ready to return to the starting squad.





Two squads with similar strategies and an aggressive playing meet each other this Saturday at the Coliseum Alfonso Perez. Who'll claim the three points?



Gregorio Manzano has failed to obtain a single point in the last three games and the situation could soon become unbearable without some positive impact in the results. Almeria, on the other hand, fails to escape from the bottom fight and wants to avoid its 10th game without celebrating a victory.





Antonio Palop's return was not enough for Sevilla to recover the right path. The hosts will be missing key players as Jesus Navas, Luis Fabiano and perhaps Diego Perrotti too. The visitors are highly compromised too as Hernan Pellerano, Hernan Bernadello, Miguel Angel Nieto and Michel are all struggling with injuries and might not be ready to perform. At least, Almeria recovers Juanma Ortiz.





A victory is mandatory both for Sevilla and Almeria to find themselves in this season. Manzano's confidence remains intact after such adverse results in the last games. “These players can easily put together four consecutive wins, because they have desire and ambition. Myself and my players, we will give everything for the name of Sevilla" said Nervionenses' head coach earlier this week.





Will this be enough to return to victory at the Sanchez Pizjuan? Sevilla might say goodbye to the European fight upon another defeat. Almeria must secure the full scoring to take off from the basement. Will they make it?



Quique Sanchez Flores' Colchoneros receive Deportivo on Saturday's late game in great need of the three points to keep themselves alive in the fight for the category. Deportivo has changed radically since Miguel Angel Lotina introduced a fifth defender on his scheme, but they might need some extra firepower to deal with the European reigning champion at home.





Atletico's head coach will introduce a few modifications on his formation for this clash. First of all, Tiago is ready to return to the starting squad and his presence will surely boost Rojiblancos' attack to its maximum. Uruguayan international Diego Godin will be making room for Alvaro Dominguez in the back line. Former Deportivo defender Filipe Luis will be joining Luis Antonio Perea on the wings.





Deportivo managed to open a seven-point buffer zone from the relegation line, but such advantage might not be enough upon a defeat in Madrid. Midfielder Ruben Perez will not be able to perform against his former team.





Andres Guardado and Ivan Sanchez have not recovered from their injuries and will be missing this clash, unlike Adrian Lopez, who'll be leading the attack from the first time since October.





Atletico must claim the three points to shorten the gap from the European fight and finish the year in a more comfortable situation. Deportivo wants to prolong its momentum for another week, will they succeed?



Esteban Vigo's Hercules host Malaga on Sunday in a decisive game for the relegation fight. Hercules misses Matías Fritzler for this clash, as he received his fifth yellow card in the last game.





Things haven't work out as expected since Manuel Pellegrini arrived to Malaga. The visitors are only three points above the relegation line. A defeat at the Rico Perez could deliver a fatal blow to the Boquerones, who have not been particularly successful playing away.





Pellegrini recovers Sebastián Fernández and Patrick Mtliga, but it's expected the same starting eleven that defeated Racing last week will be responsible for dealing with Hercules' defense.





Will Malaga survive the overwhelming firepower of David Trezeguet and Nelson Haedo Valdez?



Another relegation six-pointer takes place in Gijon this Sunday. Manolo Preciado wants to return to victory after seven weeks, and the morale of the team received a major boost as team's top striker Diego Castro and Roberto Canella are likely to return to the starting squad.





Luis Garcia's Levante have just defeated Atletico last week and are aware another victory will help them take off from the basement and join the fight for the upper half. Felipe Caicedo is likely to be among the starting eleven, but his evolution during the last days (he's been struggling with an ankle injury since the beginning of the month) will be decisive.





This is the first time in history Sporting and Levante take on each other at the Primera Division. Much more than three points will be in play at the Molinon, who'll claim the full scoring?



Mauricio Pochettino's Pericos visit San Mames eager to take advantage of Villarreal's misstep and shorten the gap to become the third alternative for La Liga's fight. Athletic needs a victory to recover from Real Sociedad's victory at the Basque derby.





"Athletic isn' just Fernando Llorente" said Espanyol's coach earlier this week. Los Pericos have not won at the Cathedral in the last 10 years, a fact to take into consideration for this clash. "They're a highly aggressive, intense squad. We'll need to deploy all our weaponry to succeed there" he added





Espanyol recovers Jesus Datolo, Joan Verdu and David López, but misses Javi Marquez and Rui Fonte. Joaquin Caparros, on the other hand, will be able to play with Andoni Iraola and Koikili Lertxundi, strengthening team's defensive capabilities.





Espanyol must secure the three points to reach next week's clash with Barcelona at their best. Athletic might be lost amidst the middle of the positions table with anything but a victory, who'll succeed?



Miguel Angel Portugal's Racing visit Mallorca eager to celebrate their first victory away in the last nine months, but to succeed they'll have to deal with Michael Laudrup's Barralets, who've shown strong credentials to fight for the European places this season.





The hosts will have to do without Ayoze Díaz, Kevin García, Sergio Tejera, Tomás Pina (all of them struggling with injuries) and Rubén González, who's banned from performing. Laudrup will have to introduce some major rotation in his squad to cope with such adverse situation.





At least, Antonio Tuni has finally recovered from an injury that's kept him away from the fields since the beginning of the year. Oscar Serrano returns to Racing's starting eleven for the first time in nine months.





Pape Diop, Waldo Ponce and Domingo Cisma won't be able to perform for Racing, who must win this match if they don't want to fall below the relegation line.



Jose Mourinho's Real Madrid visit Zaragoza at the basement on Sunday's evening ready to recover the top position if only for a few hours. Sergio Ramos will be missing the next three games due to injuries, making room for Alvaro Arbeloa on the right wing.





Jose Aguirre has not yet been able to celebrate a victory with Zaragoza. Sinama Pongolle is likely to return to the team (he injured playing against Villarreal a few weeks ago). He'll take over Braulio's place, who's sidelined with a flu.





Karim Benzema earned his place as center forward on Wednesday as he score his first hat-trick with Real Madrid. Cristiano Ronaldo will lead the advance from the right wing while Lass Diarra replaces Sami Khedira, joining Xabi Alonso in the midfield.





Barcelona has a busy schedule ahead while Real Madrid must face relatively "weak" rivals. Jose Mourinho must make things extremely well to recover the first position, will he make it this Sunday at the Romareda?



Real Sociedad visits the Camp Nou in the best possible scenario, as last week's victory at the Basque derby against Athletic boosted the morale of Martin Lasarte's Errealas to its maximum.





Having scored 27 goals in the last six matches, Barcelona wants to prolong their leadership for another week before they visit Espanyol next week.





Pep Guardiola might introduce a few modifications on his scheme to prepare for next week's visit to Cornella-El-Prat. Gerard Pique could miss such decisive clash if he's booked, for what Eric Abidal and Maxwell might strengthen the back line against Real Sociedad.





The partnership between Xabi Prieto and Joseba Llorente has been the backbone of Txuri-urdin success. They might have trouble dealing with Barcelona's midfielders (it's uncertain whether Sergio Busquets or Javier Mascherano will play a defensive role in the midfield).





Real Sociedad must undertake a test of fire if they're meant to fight for the European qualification. Will they make it?



Valencia's coach Unai Emery does not want his Che's take Monday's match for granted. The victory could be decisive to secure a place among the European qualifiers.





When asked about Osasuna, Emery said "though they've obtained only one point away so far, I want us to think that they've won them all. If we think it's going to be an easy game, we will only make things increasingly difficult for us".





Osasuna's coach Jose Antonio Camacho will have to do without Javier Camuñas, Damia and Ruper, all of them struggling with injuries. Walter Pandiani's return has boosted the attack of the visitors, but will they have what it takes to overcome Valencia's defense?





Valencia's coach will have to find a way to replace David Albelda, Mehmet Topal, Tino Costa, goalkeeper Miguel Ángel Moyà and Chori Dominguez. At least Valencia's defender David Navarro seems to be fully fit to return to the team.





Osasuna must visit the Mestalla in great need of the three points, will they make it happen?