La Liga Table 2016: Latest Standings Following Friday's Week 8 Results
Las Palmas and Espanyol kicked off Week 8 of the 2016-17 La Liga season with a scoreless draw on Friday in the Canary Islands.
The first match in Spain's top division after the international break started off with plenty of action but petered out quickly, and a 0-0 final score was a logical result.
Here's a look at the latest La Liga standings:
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| 1 | Atletico Madrid | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 2 | +12 | 15 |
| 2 | Real Madrid | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 16 | 7 | +9 | 15 |
| 3 | Sevilla | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 13 | 10 | +3 | 14 |
| 4 | Barcelona | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 22 | 10 | +12 | 13 |
| 5 | Villarreal | 7 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 9 | 4 | +5 | 13 |
| 6 | Las Palmas | 8 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 16 | 13 | +3 | 12 |
| 7 | Athletic Club | 7 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 10 | 8 | +2 | 12 |
| 8 | Eibar | 7 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 9 | 7 | +2 | 11 |
| 9 | Leganes | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 10 | -3 | 10 |
| 10 | Celta Vigo | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 11 | -2 | 10 |
| 11 | Real Sociedad | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 10 |
| 12 | Alaves | 7 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 8 | 7 | +1 | 9 |
| 13 | Real Betis | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 12 | -4 | 8 |
| 14 | Deportivo La Coruna | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 | -1 | 8 |
| 15 | Malaga | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 9 | -2 | 8 |
| 16 | Espanyol | 8 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 9 | 14 | -5 | 7 |
| 17 | Sporting Gijon | 7 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 16 | -10 | 7 |
| 18 | Valencia | 7 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 9 | 14 | -5 | 6 |
| 19 | Osasuna | 7 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 15 | -8 | 3 |
| 20 | Granada | 7 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 16 | -9 | 2 |
Las Palmas entered Friday's match against Espanyol as clear favourites to take the win, as their tremendous home advantage―teams from the mainland have to travel hours by plane just to get to the Canary Islands―has served them well so far this season.
Per Ladbrokes, the stats were also in their favour:
Espanyol's Marc Roca drew a fine save from Raul Lizoain in the first minute, however, as the Catalans were determined to grab their second win of the season. Las Palmas' Jonathan Viera also threatened early, setting up an entertaining start to the match.
Kevin-Prince Boateng missed two shots from promising positions before the midfield battle took over, with both teams committing plenty of harsh fouls. Javi Fuego was the only man to run into a booking during the first half, but there could have been a lot more.
The best chances fell to the hosts before the half-time break, but Boateng and Marko Livaja couldn't hand Las Palmas the lead. Leo Baptistao also went close on two occasions and, at the half, the match was scoreless.
Boateng and Livaja continued their onslaught after the break but, once again, they couldn't find the target with their efforts. Espanyol were happy to sit further back, knowing a 0-0 draw would be a solid result in the Canary Islands.
Viera went close with a volley but Las Palmas' push for a goal lacked a real punch and, after a drab ending to a match that started with so much promise, both teams settled for a draw.
On Saturday, Real Madrid will be desperate for a win against Real Betis after three consecutive draws in La Liga. Per the club's official website, Los Blancos manager Zinedine Zidane is determined to turn things around:
"When you go into a game these days there are no small teams. We mustn't think that we will simply turn up and win. We always have to play at a high level in all of the games. That is what I said. The players are all very focused on what they do and what we need to do is get back to winning games. We will work hard to get back to winning ways.
"
Barcelona will also look to bounce back from their disappointing defeat at the hands of Celta Vigo, as the Catalans host Deportivo La Coruna and Atletico Madrid take on Granada.
On Sunday, top-four hopefuls Villarreal and Celta Vigo will battle.
