La Liga Table 2017 Week 23: Updated Standings Following Friday's Result

Week 23 of the 2016-17 La Liga season started with a bang on Friday, as Granada beat Real Betis 4-1 in a highly entertaining match.

The hosts entered the match as one of the most out-of-form clubs in any of Europe's major leagues but cruised to a 3-0 lead before half-time. Spanish Football Pod couldn't believe it:

There was more drama and spectacle after the break, including an odd incident in which goalscorer and loanee Andreas Pereira was sent off for getting slapped in the face.

Here's a look at the current La Liga standings:

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Real Madrid	20	15	4	1	54	18	+36	49
2	Barcelona	22	14	6	2	61	18	+43	48
3	Sevilla	22	14	4	4	44	28	+16	46
4	Atletico Madrid	22	12	6	4	39	18	+21	42
5	Real Sociedad	22	13	2	7	36	31	+5	41
6	Villarreal	22	9	9	4	29	15	+14	36
7	Athletic Club	22	10	5	7	28	26	+2	35
8	Eibar	22	10	5	7	36	29	+7	35
9	Espanyol	22	8	8	6	30	29	+1	32
10	Celta Vigo	21	9	3	9	33	36	-3	30
11	Las Palmas	22	7	7	8	31	33	-2	28
12	Alaves	22	6	9	7	21	28	-7	27
13	Real Betis	22	6	6	10	22	35	-13	24
14	Malaga	22	5	8	9	29	36	-7	23
15	Valencia	21	5	5	11	29	40	-11	20
16	Deportivo La Coruna	21	4	7	10	26	34	-8	19
17	Leganes	22	4	6	12	15	37	-22	18
18	Sporting Gijon	22	4	4	14	24	43	-19	16
19	Granada	23	3	7	13	21	49	-28	16
20	Osasuna	22	1	7	14	24	49	-25	10

Recap

As shared by Misterchip (English), Granada made La Liga history before the official blew the opening whistle:

The visitors were the better side for much of the first half, but Granada were ruthlessly efficient, scoring three very good goals.

First, Mehdi Carcela timed his run to perfection before beating goalkeeper Antonio Adan. Just 10 minutes later, Adrian Ramos added a second goal, heading home from close range.

At that point, Betis still seemed to be alive in the match, with better finishing the difference. Pereira added a third goal before half-time, however, and as shared by Sam Tighe of Bleacher Report UK, the Manchester United man showed great intelligence in converting his chance:

The spectacle continued after the break, as Ramos doubled his tally in two tries and Petros scored for Real Betis.

In between those two goals, an odd incident took place. Matias Nahuel went looking for trouble after injuring a Granada player, and Pereira quickly intervened, pushing the midfielder away from his team-mate.

Nahuel retaliated with a slap, and the official inexplicably decided to send both players off. Andrew Gaffney of Yahoo Sport UK couldn't believe it:

Granada held on for the win, however, their second in a row at home. The result leaves the team just two points behind Leganes and La Liga survival.

La Liga leaders Real Madrid will host Espanyol on Saturday, and as reported by the club's official website, manager Zinedine Zidane is aware of their solid form, as he said: “Espanyol are a team who have had great results recently. We know that tomorrow will be difficult, but that is how it is going to be every three days and we are focussed.”

Atletico Madrid will be on the road to take on Sporting Gijon, while Barcelona play on Sunday against Leganes.