La Liga Results 2014: Tracking Final Scores and Top Scorers for Matchday 4
The La Liga hierarchy saw the race for a top-four finish influenced dramatically on Saturday as the likes of Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Athletic Bilbao all experienced differing fortunes in their most recent outings.
In the late fixture, Espanyol and Malaga ran out a 2-2 draw as they failed to produce an outright victor, the Anchovies moving up to ninth as a result while their hosts remain in the drop zone.
Those fixtures came after Eibar got the better of fellow minnows Elche on Friday evening, Gaizka Garitano's men earning a highly valuable 2-0 win in foreign territory.
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Read on for a breakdown of Saturday's key matchups, along with discussion of the scorers figuring most prominently in those fixtures and the table's current make-up.
| Eibar | 2-0 | Elche |
| Real Madrid | 8-2 | Deportivo |
| Granada | 1-0 | Athletic Bilbao |
| Atletico Madrid | 2-2 | Celta Vigo |
| Espanyol | 2-2 | Malaga |
| Almeria | 2-1 | Real Sociedad |
| Villarreal | 4-2 | Rayo |
| Sevilla | 3-1 | Cordoba |
| Barcelona | 5-0 | Levante |
| Getafe | 0-3 | Valencia |
| Barcelona | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 12 |
| Valencia | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 10 |
| Sevilla | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 10 |
| Atletico Madrid | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 8 |
| Granada | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 8 |
| Villarreal | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 7 |
| Real Madrid | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 6 |
| Celta Vigo | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 6 |
| Eibar | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6 |
| Almeria | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| Malaga | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | -2 | 5 |
| Real Sociedad | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| Elche | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -4 | 4 |
| Deportivo | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -6 | 4 |
| Athletic | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | -1 | 3 |
| Getafe | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | -6 | 3 |
| Rayo | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | -3 | 2 |
| Espanyol | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | -3 | 2 |
| Cordoba | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | -4 | 2 |
| Levante | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | -10 | 1 |
Key Saturday Results and Scorers
Deportivo La Coruna 2-8 Real Madrid
Following back-to-back league defeats against Atletico and Real Sociedad, Real Madrid bounced back to winning ways with an 8-2 hammering of Deportivo La Coruna, kicking the weekend's action off in thumping fashion.
As Infostrada tells, this was the first time in La Liga history Los Merengues have managed such a magnificent goal tally away from home:
Braces from Gareth Bale and Javier Hernandez helped the scoreline, along with a sole contribution from an improved James Rodriguez. But it was the omnipotent Cristiano Ronaldo who unsurprisingly took the headlines.
His hat-trick came about through some awful defending, admittedly, but is nonetheless an achievement he'll cherish, with OptaJose and Squawka illustrating just what a rare breed of scoring prowess he continues to display:
Los Merengues finally get their second win of the season as a result of that win, doing their goal difference a world of good in the process.
Athletic Bilbao 0-1 Granada
Athletic Bilbao still have just the one La Liga win to their name this season after a home defeat to Granada left the club settling for a place in the table's bottom half.
Jhon Cordoba struck five minutes prior to the halftime whistle in what proved to be the match's only score, but his quality effort from outside the box went some way in satisfying the lack of quantity.
Athletic's home form has largely been the spine of any success they've come upon in recent years, and OptaJose hints that this result may signal such comforts are beginning to waver:
Granada will feel little sympathy for their victims, however, as their unbeaten start to the campaign was kept alive, sitting third after four games this term.
Atletico Madrid 2-2 Celta Vigo
The roller-coaster campaign continues for Diego Simeone and his Atletico Madrid charges, who followed up a 2-1 victory over Real with a 2-2 draw at home to Celta Vigo on Saturday, leaving Los Rojiblancos disappointed.
That being said, as Ben Hayward of Goal.com shows, the visiting outfit were pulling out all the stops in order to earn their share of the spoils, Pablo Hernandez netting with a ridiculous back-heel:
Atleti's defensive heroes shirked their usual responsibilities as Joao Miranda and Diego Godin both scored to give the hosts a 2-1 halftime lead.
Duran Nolito's 53rd-minute penalty would ultimately prove decisive, though, Celta also keeping their unbeaten 2014-15 season intact—albeit drawing their last three games in succession.
Key Sunday Results and Scorers
Sevilla 3-1 Cordoba
Sevilla continues their hot start with a 3-1 victory over Cordoba, giving Unai Emery's squad their third victory of the season.
Carlos Bacca stormed out of the gate with a goal during the eighth minute. Eighty minutes later, he penned an exclamation point with his second score of the contest, securing Sevilla three points with a late goal in penalty kicks.
They're only looking up Barcelona after this latest victory, but those are La Liga's only club with three victories through four fixtures.
Despite holding possession for 61 percent of the match, Cordoba remains winless in their return to the Primera Division.
Barcelona 4-0 Levante
Barcelona made their status as La Liga's team to beat clear with another dominating win. This time, Levante served as the hopeless victim during a 5-0 onslaught.
Five different players scattered goals throughout the rout, with Neymar starting the action and Lionel Messi delivering the closing blow.
Before joining the scoring barrage, Messi registered a pair of assists, giving him seven through Barcelona's last four games. The superstar has served as his squad's one steady rock over the season, as demonstrated by the club's Twitter page.
Although Real Madrid's eight-goal Saturday propelled them to first in scoring, Barcelona ranks second with 11 goals. They also are the only squad that has yet to have surrendered a goal, giving them a wide edge in goal differential.
Malaga and Granada are the next teams up with the daunting goal of stopping this sensational juggernaut, but neither stands much of a chance of halting Barcelona's reign of terror.
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