Onderwerpe: La Liga, Barcelona, Deportivo La Coruña, Atlético Madrid, Granada, Real Betis, Real Madrid
Atlético Madrid overtook Real Madrid as league leaders before the International Break. Will they be able to defend their ground, or will Los Blancos or Sevilla strip them from the top spot?

With the International Break finally over, La Liga resumes its action with a host of interesting matches.

The battle for the top spot of the competition will have one more chapter written this weekend, with Atlético Madrid trying to defend their lead when they host Granada, the last placed-team in La Liga. Lucas Alcaraz took over as coach for Los Nazaríes, but his first challenge as their boss might not end as well as he could hope for.

As for the other Spanish top-flight giants, Real Madrid's fans can only hope for their current slump to end, as Los Blancos head to Sevilla to face Betis. Poyet's men have only won one of their last four games, but their home-field advantage could be too much for Zidane's crew to handle.

While Atlético and Real hope for the best, fourth-placed Barcelona will try to climb back up when they host Deportivo, one of the teams in the lower half of the standings. Luis Enrique is toying with the possibility of having Lionel Messi on the pitch, but his presence isn't a certainty as he is still recovering from a muscular injury he picked up last month.

Matchday 8: Full La Liga fixtures, Oct 14-17

Oct. 14: Las Palmas vs Espanyol : 11:45 PDT/ 14:45 EDT/ 18:45 GMT/ 19:45 BST/ 20:45 CEST

Oct. 15: Leganés vs Sevilla : 04:00 PDT/ 07:00 EDT/ 11:00 GMT/ 12:00 BST/ 13:00 CEST

Oct. 15: Barcelona vs Deportivo la Coruña : 07:15 PDT/ 10:15 EDT/ 14:15 GMT/ 15:15 BST/ 16:15 CEST

Oct. 15: Atlético Madrid vs Granada : 09:30 PDT/ 12:30 EDT/ 16:30 GMT/ 17:30 BST/ 18:30 CEST

Oct. 15: Real Betis vs Real Madrid : 11:45 PDT/ 14:45 EDT/ 18:45 GMT/ 19:45 BST/ 20:45 CEST

Oct. 16: Deportivo Alavés vs Málaga : 03:00 PDT/ 06:00 EDT/ 10:00 GMT/ 11:00 BST/ 12:00 CEST

Oct. 16: Athletic Club vs Real Sociedad : 07:15 PDT/ 10:15 EDT/ 14:15 GMT/ 15:15 BST/ 16:15 CEST

Oct. 16: Sporting Gijon vs Valencia : 09:30 PDT/ 12:30 EDT/ 16:30 GMT/ 17:30 BST/ 18:30 CEST

Oct. 16: Villarreal vs Celta Vigo : 11:45 PDT/ 14:45 EDT/ 18:45 GMT/ 19:45 BST/ 20:45 CEST

Oct. 17: Eibar vs Osasuna : 11:45 PDT/ 14:45 EDT/ 18:45 GMT/ 19:45 BST/ 20:45 CEST

Matchday 8: Social Media Buzz

One of the most interesting stories prior to the beginning of Matchday 8 was Toni Kroos' contract extension with Real Madrid. The German midfielder will remain playing at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium until the end of the 2021-2022 season, and he shared his enthusiasm on Twitter.

Matchday 6: La Liga standings

Pos.TeamGWWGVDVDTDGPVorm
1 Real Madrid 34 27 6 1 74 22 +52 87 WWWWW
2 Girona 34 23 5 6 73 42 +31 74 WWWVW
3 Barcelona 34 22 7 5 70 43 +27 73 VWVWW
4 Atlético Madrid 34 21 4 9 63 39 +24 67 WWVWW
5 Athletic Club 34 17 10 7 55 33 +22 61 WVGGV
6 Real Sociedad 34 14 12 8 48 35 +13 54 WVGGW
7 Real Betis 34 13 13 8 43 39 +4 52 WGWWV
8 Valencia 34 13 8 13 37 39 -2 47 VVVWW
9 Villarreal 34 12 9 13 56 58 -2 45 VWWGV
10 Getafe 34 10 13 11 41 47 -6 43 VWGGV
11 Deportivo Alavés 34 11 8 15 32 38 -6 41 WWWVV
12 Sevilla 34 10 11 13 45 46 -1 41 WGWWW
13 Osasuna 34 11 6 17 37 51 -14 39 VVVVW
14 Las Palmas 34 10 7 17 30 43 -13 37 VVVVV
15 Celta de Vigo 34 8 10 16 40 52 -12 34 WVWVG
16 Rayo Vallecano 34 7 13 14 27 43 -16 34 VVWGG
17 Mallorca 34 6 14 14 27 40 -13 32 VGVVG
18 Cádiz 34 4 14 16 23 49 -26 26 VGVVW
19 Granada 34 4 9 21 36 64 -28 21 VWGWV
20 Almería 34 2 11 21 33 67 -34 17 WVVGV

Champions League (groepsfase)
Europa League (groepsfase)
Promotion - Europa Conference League (Qualification: )
Relegation - LaLiga2