Barca, Real and Atletico all win in La Liga

Barcelona opened up a four-point gap at the top of La Liga, maintaining their 100 percent start as they cruised to a 3-0 victory at Catalan rivals Girona on Saturday. An own goal either side of the break and a Luis Suarez strike in his 100th league appearance for the club 21 minutes from the end were enough for Ernesto Valverde’s team to secure the points in the first-ever league meeting between the sides.

Luis Suarez's LaLiga record for Barcelona: 100 games ? 87 goals ⚽️ 43 assists ?️ Unreal return. ?? pic.twitter.com/i517jPnpLO

— Squawka Football (@Squawka) September 23, 2017

Having seen Atletico defeat Sevilla 2-0 to move into second place and a Dani Ceballos double help an unconvincing Real to sneak past bottom-of-the-table Alaves 2-1 earlier on, Barca made light work of their opponents, even if two of their goals were fortunate. “There was pressure on us given the results in the other games and the atmosphere here today,” Valverde said. “It’s a derby, a great atmosphere and we needed to play with our heads as well as our hearts. “We needed to combat Girona’s enthusiasm and we got the job done. Of course, I’m delighted with how things are going - I’m not going to complain when we win. I’ll do that when things aren’t going well.”

? Valverde: "What I like best at the start of the season is the team spirit the side is showing" #FCBlive

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) September 23, 2017

Real returned to winning ways following their shock 1-0 defeat to Betis in midweek as two first-half goals from Ceballos in his maiden league start for the club sandwiched a Manu Garcia header for hosts Alaves.

? This is what our match-winner @DaniCeballos46 had to say after we secured all three points in Vitoria!#RMLigahttps://t.co/QWIsOSJUDh

— Real Madrid C.F.?? (@realmadriden) September 23, 2017

There were missed chances at both ends in the second half. Cristiano Ronaldo, who is yet to score in La Liga this season, and Alaves substitute Alfonso Pedraza both struck the woodwork twice, while Sergio Ramos fired over an open goal late on. However, Zinedine Zidane’s side hung on to claim a third league win of the season and move on to 11 points. Second-half strikes from Yannick Carrasco and Antoine Griezmann helped Atletico to leapfrog Sevilla into second place. They remain unbeaten with four wins and two draws after six games.

Atlético Madrid at the Wanda Metropolitano: 2 games 2 wins 3 goals scored 0 goals conceded Perfect start. ?⚪️ pic.twitter.com/8SZkTrTAD3

— Squawka Football (@Squawka) September 23, 2017

Wins for Atletico, Real Madrid & Barça and a six-goal thriller at La Rosaleda on Saturday!#LaLigaSantander pic.twitter.com/eMsa7UgDW8

— LaLiga (@LaLigaEN) September 23, 2017

.@FCBarcelona's 100% record sees tham four points clear at the ? after Saturday's games. #LaLigaSantander pic.twitter.com/zd83Dl1dQ6

— LaLiga (@LaLigaEN) September 23, 2017

RESULTSAtletico Madrid 2 (Carrasco 46, Griezmann 70) Sevilla 0Alaves 1 (Manu Garcia 40) Real Madrid 2 (Ceballos 10, 43)Malaga 3 (Rolan 35, 84, Baysse 81) Athletic Bilbao 3 (Aduriz 4-pen, Williams 51, 70)Girona 0 Barcelona 3 (Benitez 17-og, Iraizoz 48-og, Suarez 69)