La Liga Table 2017 Week 29: Updated Standings Following Friday's Results

Jose Antonio Reyes scored a stunning last-minute winner for Espanyol on Friday against Real Betis to earn a dramatic 2-1 victory in La Liga.

After a moribund first period, Ruben Castro put the visitors ahead in the 78th minute from the penalty spot before Javi Fuego equalised two minutes from time to give Espanyol parity. However, Reyes, formerly of Betis' great rivals Sevilla, arrowed home a sensational right-footed shot to complete a brilliant turnaround.

Elsewhere this weekend, leaders Real Madrid have the chance to pull five points clear of Barcelona when they host Alaves at the Santiago Bernabeu. The Catalan outfit will have the chance to respond when they travel to Granada later in the day.

Here is a look at how the table is shaping up after Friday’s result and what’s still to come this weekend in Spain’s top flight.

Date	Time (BST)	Fixture
Friday, March 31	7:45 p.m.	Espanyol 2-1 Real Betis
Saturday, April 1	12 p.m.	Villarreal vs. Eibar
Saturday, April 1	3:15 p.m.	Osasuna vs. Athletic Club
Saturday, April 1	5:30 p.m.	Real Sociedad vs. Leganes
Saturday, April 1	7:45 p.m.	Malaga vs. Atletico Madrid
Sunday, April 2	11 a.m.	Sevilla vs. Sporting Gijon
Sunday, April 2	3:15 p.m.	Real Madrid vs. Alaves
Sunday, April 2	5:30 p.m.	Valencia vs. Deportivo
Sunday, April 2	7:45 p.m.	Granada vs. Barcelona
Monday, April 3	7:45 p.m.	Celta Vigo vs. Las Palmas

R	Team	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Real Madrid	27	20	5	2	71	28	+43	65
2	Barcelona	28	19	6	3	81	25	+56	63
3	Sevilla	28	17	6	5	52	34	+18	57
4	Atletico Madrid	28	16	7	5	52	23	+29	55
5	Villarreal	28	13	9	6	39	20	+19	48
6	Real Sociedad	28	15	3	10	42	39	+3	48
7	Athletic Club	28	13	5	10	35	32	+3	44
8	Espanyol	29	11	10	8	42	40	+2	43
9	Eibar	28	11	8	9	44	39	+5	41
10	Alaves	28	10	10	8	29	33	-4	40
11	Celta Vigo	27	11	5	11	40	45	-5	38
12	Las Palmas	28	9	8	11	44	45	-1	35
13	Real Betis	29	8	7	14	32	46	-14	31
14	Valencia	28	8	6	14	38	51	-13	30
15	Malaga	28	6	9	13	33	45	-12	27
16	Deportivo La Coruna	28	6	9	13	31	43	-12	27
17	Leganes	28	6	8	14	22	41	-19	26
18	Sporting Gijon	28	5	6	17	31	57	-26	21
19	Granada	28	4	7	17	25	58	-33	19
20	Osasuna	28	1	8	19	28	67	-39	11

Friday Recap

With both sides marooned in midtable ahead of this one, it was no surprise to see the match start off at a slow pace. Indeed, chances were at a premium in the early stages, with Espanyol looking the most likely to break through without ever creating anything of note.

As a result, the atmosphere was flat at the RCDE Stadium, and supporters needed little incentive to head down into the concourse at half-time.

Despite a goalless first period, the La Liga Twitter offered some reasons to be positive about the deadlock being broken in the second half:

After the hour mark, both teams started to find their groove. Betis’ Antonio Sanabria cut inside dangerously and lashed a left-footed shot over the crossbar. Espanyol’s Diego Reyes then saw his guided header stopped by Antonio Adan.

But it was Betis who were in the ascendency, and after a slick passing move, Sanabria was felled in the area. The referee pointed to the spot, and the veteran Castro stepped up to finish with conviction.

Aitor Alcalde Colomer/Getty Images

It was the least the Andalusians deserved after their dominant second-half display, but Espanyol showed spirit to battle back and eventually netted through an unlikely source.

After a scramble in the box, it was Fuego who hammered in a shot from the edge of the area, which crossed the line despite the best efforts of the Betis defenders. It was his first in around two-and-a-half years in La Liga.

The goal looked to be enough to earn Espanyol a point, but with the clock ticking down, the veteran Reyes showed his class.

After shaping to shoot on his favoured left foot, he cut back onto his right side and blasted an unstoppable shot into the top corner to send the home crowd wild. Per Dermot Corrigan of ESPN FC, it's a goal that would have been sweet for the 33-year-old given his allegiances:

It was a goal that eventually earned the three points for the hosts, pushing them up into eighth and keeping their hopes of European qualification alive.

Weekend Preview

ANDER GILLENEA/Getty Images

Real Madrid can turn up the pressure on Barcelona on Sunday as they take to the field first at the Bernabeu.

Los Blancos took a big step towards the title before the international break, battling to a 2-1 win over Athletic Bilbao at the San Mames. It was a weekend Barcelona may have outlined as one that they could have potentially pulled points back over, although once again, Zinedine Zidane’s men found a way.

You sense they will do enough to find a way here too even without their midfield linchpin in Casmeiro, who is suspended for the match. Per Dermot Corrigan of ESPN FC, Zidane’s squad is looking in tremendous shape at the moment overall:

For Barcelona, it’s about clinging onto the coattails of their rivals, and they will be expected to do so against Granada.

They will be without Lionel Messi, though. The Argentina man picked up a yellow card last time out in the 4-2 win over Valencia, meaning he'll be sidelined for this one due to suspension. The onus will be on Luis Suarez and Neymar to carry the fight to the relegation battlers.

Jean Catuffe/Getty Images

Neymar continued his mesmeric form on international duty with Brazil, and against a team sat 19th Spain’s top flight, you wonder what kind of damage he will do. BigSport summed up the 25-year-old’s incredible goalscoring record following his two strikes for the Selecao during the recent FIFA World Cup qualifying matches:

Elsewhere, the battle for third place is hotting up. Sevilla have a chance to get back to winning ways against Sporting Gijon at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, while Atletico Madrid, who trail them by just two points, face a potentially tricky trip to Malaga on Saturday night.