Messi’s superb first-half free-kick from 25 yards into the top corner took his club tally to 539 goals and he also has 61 for Argentina.

Luis Suarez could have added a second but his chip sailed narrowly wide.

Substitute Kevin Gameiro thought he had levelled for Atletico late on, but the goal was ruled out for offside

Diego Costa provided the knock down for Gameiro’s close-range finish, but the former Chelsea striker was adjudged to be in an offside position.

The visitors were second best for large periods in the match and had just one effort on target, a looping Saul Niguez header that was comfortable for goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen to deal with.

In the context of the season, this was a huge victory for Ernesto Valverde’s side against their nearest title rivals, as they close in on their ninth title triumph in 14 seasons with 11 games left to play.

They remain on course to secure a treble of trophies, with their Champions League last-16 second-leg against Chelsea taking place on 14 March and the Spanish Cup final against Sevilla next month.

Record goalscorer Messi made the difference again, taking his tally to 28 for the season and Barcelona’s 100th in all competitions this season.

They could have had more but the impressive Philippe Coutinho had a couple of efforts kept out by Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak, while Suarez saw a close-range strike chalked off for offside.

The only blemish for Barca saw skipper Andres Iniesta hobble off in the first half with the club saying he suffered a hamstring injury that requires tests to see how long he will be out for with the Champions League second leg against Chelsea on 14 March.

Barcelona travel to Malaga in their next league game on Saturday (kick-off 19:45 GMT)

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Source: BBC Sport

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Partey on Thursday signed a new deal with the Madrid based club which will keep him at the club till 2023.

The Ghanaian international has played 35 times for Atletico Madrid this season and has scored three league goals.

The 24-year-old joined Atletico in 2011 and made his debut for the club in 2015 after spending the previous three seasons out on loan.

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By: Daniel Koranteng/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Ronaldo set up Lucas Vazquez to head in the first-minute opener, then blasted home from Marcelo’s cross.

Toni Kroos added a third before Ronaldo headed in Luka Modric’s corner.

Jon Bautista pulled one back after the break, but Ronaldo scored his third from close range before Asier Illarramendi’s volleyed consolation.

Confidence booster for PSG tie

With Real Madrid long out of the La Liga title race – they are 16 points behind Barcelona even after this win – the Champions League is their last remaining hope for the season – and perhaps for Zinedine Zidane’s job.

Real became the first team to successfully defend the Champions League last season, both successes coming in Zidane’s two years in charge. But they have been poor domestically this season.

Zidane named a strong side against 14th-placed Real Sociedad, with only Gareth Bale and Casemiro rested from their last match, and he was rewarded with a good performance and result – a couple of defensive blips aside.

They could – and should – have won by more, with Ronaldo and Karim Benzema, who was booed by the home fans after missing a last-minute sitter, also hitting the woodwork.

Bale did come on late on, and had a hand in Ronaldo’s third, his shot being parried straight to the Portuguese to score.

Real – who move up to third in the table – host PSG on Wednesday in the Champions League round of 16 first leg, with the trip to France not until Tuesday, 6 March.

Ronaldo finding domestic form

Ronaldo’s Champions League form was never in doubt this season – he became the first player in history to score in each group game, scoring nine times in the six games.

But he had scored only four La Liga goals before the new year.

However, seven goals in his last four games suggest that was an anomaly for a player who has now scored 33 hat-tricks in the Spanish top flight.

He looked full of confidence as he struck three times, and could have scored more – hitting the post and heading wide from close range towards the end.

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Source:BBC

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It saw fourth-placed Real close the gap on the hosts to two points, with a game in hand, although they remain 16 points behind La Liga leaders Barcelona.

Ronaldo converted after being fouled in the box and added a second following a push on Karim Benzema before half-time.

Valencia’s Santi Mina pulled one back, before Marcelo added a third for Real.

Toni Kroos then put the game beyond the hosts with a superb long-range strike for Zidane’s side one minute from time.

Zidane said he was enduring his “worst moment” as Real coach after the European champions were knocked out of the Copa del Rey by Leganes on Wednesday at the Bernabeu.

The Frenchman also suggested his future at the club depends on whether they can beat Paris St-Germain in the Champions League last-16 next month.

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Source: BBC

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He was given a one-match ban for being shown two yellow cards and a further four for pushing the referee in the back after he had been sent off.

The bookings at the Nou Camp were for taking off his shirt to celebrate his goal to make it 2-1 and for a dive.

He will miss Wednesday’s second leg.

Ronaldo, 32, will have 10 days to appeal.

The Portugal international will be able to play in the Champions League but will not return to domestic action until 20 September against Real Betis.

Madrid had already signalled their intent to appeal against Ronaldo’s second yellow card shown for diving eight minutes from time when he went down inside the area under pressure from Samuel Umtiti.

“Ronaldo’s sending-off annoys me because even if it is not a penalty, the card is harsh,” said Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane after the game. “We will see if we can do something so that he is available on Wednesday.”

Ronaldo was only on the field for 24 minutes as he was introduced as a second-half substitute and fired into the top corner 10 minutes from time to give Madrid a 2-1 lead.

It was Ronaldo’s 10th red card of his career and the two yellow cards on Sunday came within two minutes.

“Once shown the red card, said player (Ronaldo) pushed me lightly as a sign of his disapproval,” the referee Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea wrote in his post-match report.

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Source: BBC

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