La Liga, Week 23: Lionel Messi Scores Four In Barcelona Romp

Xavi came on as a substitute and scored the fifth at the very end. The Blaugranas attempted 32 shots on the night, and if it weren’t for some hilarious errors and some miraculous saves, they would have had somewhere in the neighborhood of 12 goals. Valencia should feel fortunate to have only lost by four.

For more on the Blaugranas, head over to FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Messi struck again in the 27th minute for his 25th goal of the La Liga campaign, giving Barcelona a 2-1 lead. Diego Alves made a save on his initial attempt, but Messi put the rebound into the roof of the net. In the two minutes following the goal, Alves has had to make two more miraculous saves. The Valencia midfield and defense have disappeared, and Barcelona has turned this into a shooting gallery.

For more on the Blaugranas, head over to FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

For more on the Blaugranas, head over to FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

FC Barcelona Lineup (4-3-3): Valdes; Abidal, Pique, Puyol, Montoya; Busquets, Fabregas, Iniesta; Sanchez, Messi, Pedro

Valencia Lineup (4-2-3-1): Alves; Mathieu, Ruiz, Rami, Miguel; Albelda, A. Costa; Feghouli, Jonas, Piatti; Soldado

Angel di Maria came off the bench in the second half and netted Madrid’s third before Benzema added a fourth, completing a brace in the 89th minute.

For more on Los Merengues, check out Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid.

Unless you’re a Cule, watching Real Madrid dominate games is fun. The way they play -- at least against the minnows of La Liga -- is entertaining. Their goals are jaw-dropping. Writing about their games after they happen is very, very easy to do.

Unfortunately, writing about their games against minnows before they happen is not easy. Especially when these games are being played at the Santiago Bernabeu. Generally, when one writes a preview of a game, they talk about things that both teams have to do to win the game. If one team is a huge underdog, there’s something on what they have to do right or what player has to have their best game.

Saturday, 12:00 p.m. ET, 6:00 p.m. local

Espanyol should recover from their poor performance last week, but without Verdu and Vila, it’s tough to see them winning away to Getafe.