Football: Barca keep the pressure on Real

MADRID: Barcelona sent a message to Real Madrid that they are ready to fight to keep their La Liga title after cruising to a 4-0 win over Zaragoza. Gerard Pique, Lionel Messi, Carlos Puyol and David Villa all scored for Barca. However, Real responded with a hard-fought 3-2 success of their own over Valencia to preserve their three-point cushion. Karim Benzema gave Real a 20th-minute lead and Sergio Ramos made it 2-0. Roberto Soldado then pulled one back for Valencia before Cristiano Ronaldo burst through to find the net on 79 minutes. Soldado responded with a second goal but Real held on for victory. Elsewhere, Villarreal posted a 1-0 victory over Real Betis.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 21^st, 2011.