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MADRID | Xinhua | FC Barcelona moved to within five points of La Liga leader Real Madrid on Saturday night with a narrow 1-0 home win over Las Palmas.
Las Palmas goalkeeper Alvaro Valles gave Barca a big helping hand in the 24th minute when he was sent off for rushing out of the box and bringing down Raphinha, who was through on goal.
Raphinha had an effort ruled out for offside but got his goal in the 59th minute with a looping header after a smart cross from Joao Felix.
Las Palmas didn’t let their heads drop, and Marvin Park and former Barca forward Sandro Ramirez both threatened on the break. However, Joao Felix should have doubled Barca’s lead 15 minutes from time, only to hit the bar from three yards when it looked easier to score.
Barca players – Robert Lewandowski, Joao Cancelo and Inigo Martinez – saw second-half yellow cards. They will be suspended for their next game (against Cadiz) but won’t run the risk of suspension for the ‘Clasico’ against Real Madrid on April 21.
An early goal from Sergio Ramos on his 38th birthday gave Sevilla a 1-0 win away to Getafe, which eased their relegation worries.
Ramos scored with a close-range shot following a corner and had another goal ruled out. Sevilla goalkeeper Orjan Nyland made a series of important saves in the second half to assure three big points to keep them six points clear of the bottom three.
The game was spoiled by racist insults from a section of the home fans at Sevilla coach, Quique Sanchez Flores (who had spent three spells coaching Getafe) and also at visiting defender Marcos Acuna.
Almeria remains bottom of the table after losing 3-0 at home to Osasuna, who showed no sign of being affected by the news that Jagoba Arrasate will step down as coach at the end of the season.
Jose Arnaiz opened the scoring for the visitors in the second minute and Ante Budimir doubled the lead after six minutes. Iker Munoz made it 3-0 just after the hour.
Mallorca warmed up for next week’s Copa del Rey final against Athletic Club Bilbao with a 0-0 draw away to Valencia, in which they again showed their solid defensive form.
The bad news for Javier Aguirre’s side was an apparent muscle injury suffered by Omar Mascarell, which threatens to keep him out of the final.
On Friday night, Robert Navarro’s second half goal gave Cadiz a 1-0 win at home to Granada to keep their survival hopes alive and to sink their rivals, as Jose Ramon Sandoval made his debut in the Granada dugout.
Real Madrid will play Athletic Club Bilbao on Sunday night, and Atletico Madrid travel to Villarreal on Monday. ■
