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The La Liga title race hots up on Wednesday - and Barcelona could be knocked off top spot if their recent dismal form continues. Just one month ago, if you were to suggest anyone other than Barcelona as La Liga champions come May, your opinion would have been dismissed as foolish in the extreme.But Spains title race has become an enthralling one as Barca have crumbled and the men from the capital have closed the gap. La Liga table La Liga position Team Games played Goal difference Points 1st Barcelona 33 59 76 2nd Atletico Madrid 33 41 76 3rd Real Madrid 33 68 75 Valencias trip to the Nou Camp seemingly presented Luis Enriques side with the perfect platform to put their midweek Champions League exit behind them, but they slumped to a 2-1 home defeat on Sunday night - their third in a row - to leave them ahead of Atletico on their head-to-head record and just a point ahead of Real.As the three title chasers prepare for a midweek test - live on Sky - we look at how things could pan out with five games to go... Watch highlights of Barcelonas defeat to Valencia FormTwo goals to the good at Villarreal on March 20, Barca could do no wrong, but 45 minutes later, the seeds of doubt were planted.Luis Enriques men threw away a two-goal lead, and have crumbled at home and abroad ever since.Real Madrid capitalised on an indecisive Barca to secure a vital El Clasico win at the Nou Camp - ending the hosts 39-game unbeaten run. Gareth Bale scored the third goal in Real Madrids 5-1 win at Getafe Then, a fourth defeat in as many visits to Anoeta saw Real Sociedad inflict further damage to Barcas confidence, before a Champions League exit and the Valencia loss left us all dumbfounded.Since defeat in the Madrid derby in late February, Real have been imperious domestically. Seven wins in a row, scoring 27 goals in the process, has brought Zinedine Zidanes men right back into the hunt - with Madridistas right behind their team following a stunning Champions League comeback against Wolfsburg.Atletico have done what they do best and performed when it really matters. Diego Simeones men have won seven of the last eight and have a huge psychological advantage over Barca - having knocked them out of Europes premier competition. Remaining fixtures Barcelona Atletico Madrid Real Madrid Deportivo (a) - 13th Athletic Bilbao (a) - 5th Villarreal (h) - 4th Sporting Gijon (h) - 18th Malaga (h) - 8th Rayo Vallecano (a) - 16th Real Betis (a) - 14th Rayo Vallecano (h) - 16th Real Sociedad (a) - 10th Espanyol (h) - 15th Levante (a) - 19th Valencia (h) - 12th Granada (a) - 17th Celta Vigo (h) - 6th Deportivo (a) - 13th In reality, it is Barcelonas to lose with their remaining fixtures seemingly all more than winnable, on paper.The trip to Galicia to take on Deportivo on Wednesday, live on Sky Sports, represents Barcas highest-placed opponent in their remaining five matches - and they are currently 13th.Another potential stumbling block is the derby clash with Espanyol on May 8, but Real and Atletico have much more imposing games to come.Los Blancos face a real test of their metal against Villarreal on Wednesday, also live on Sky Sports, with trips to city neighbours Rayo Vallecano and Barca conquerors Sociedad to follow, sandwiching their Champions League semi-final commitments. Deportivo on the final day will be no pushovers either.Once Atletico have negotiated a tough trip to Athletic Bilbao on Wednesday, Malaga make the trip to the Vicente Calderon. Then they can concentrate on finding a way past the might of Bayern Munich, with fixtures against teams fighting at the wrong end of the league up next domestically.A final day clash with Celta Vigo will not be easy, but Simeones sides seem to find the reserves when it really matters, no matter who the opponent.Head-to-head ruleBarca have the advantage if they finish level on points with their title rivals when the season draws to a close.If Barcelona end up level with either Atletico or Real at the end of the La Liga season, the Catalan club will prevail on the head-to-head rule. Barcas win at Bernabeu could prove vital Unlike the Premier League, which is settled on goal difference, La Ligas tie breakers are decided by a straight aggregate scoreline between the two sides.Despite beating Barcelona 2-1 in El Clasico earlier this month, Reals 4-0 defeat earlier in the season has them at a disadvantage, while Atletico lost both their league games against Barcelona earlier in the season 2-1. If Atletico and Real Madrid were to finish level on points, Atletico would prevail having beaten their city rivals at the Bernabeu earlier this year, following a 1-1 draw at the Vicente Calderon last autumn. Watch Fernando Torres score in Atleticos 3-0 win against Granada ConclusionDespite doing their best to make things interesting on the Iberian Peninsula, Barcelona should still secure their sixth La Liga title in eight seasons, with their fixtures by far the most favourable.Both Madrid sides have Champions League commitments to contend with, and much more difficult games to come.However, Barca are very much a team in disarray. Even with their attacking triumvirate of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar fit they looked very flat in attack against Valencia - highly unusual for them. Lionel Messi should be celebrating another title in May Atletico will go about things the way they normally do, and with Simeone at the helm they wont be allowed to relent for a second.And, after appearing to be down and out, with the pressure mounting on rookie boss Zidanes shoulders, Real have completely turned things around, and with Cristiano Ronaldo firing on all cylinders, whod bet against them completing a stunning fightback. All to play for!Who do you think has the toughest run-in? Let us know using the message boards or by tweeting @SkyFootball Also See: Barca slip to shock defeat As it happened Table as it stands Enrique: Were still in control Jari Kurri Jersey .Stanton suffered fractures in his face and other injuries when he was hit by a pitch Sept. 11. The Marlins are confident hell fully recover and be ready for spring training, and they hope to reach a long-term agreement with him. Leon Draisaitl Jersey . Today, their baseball playing sons were reportedly traded for each other. According to the Los Angeles Times, the Chicago Cubs dealt minor league outfield Trevor Gretzky to the Angels for catcher Matt Scioscia. http://www.hockeyoilersshop.com/jean-fra...cques-jersey/.5 million contract, according to a person familiar with the deal. Hatcher agreed to terms Thursday, according to a person who spoke on condition of anonymity because the contract had not been signed. Custom Edmonton Oilers Jerseys . Ribery terrorized the Schalke defence throughout and put the home side ahead in the 36th minute when he chipped the goalkeeper before stroking the ball into the empty net. The French winger struck again after the interval, combining with Thomas Mueller on the left before firing a deflected shot beyond the helpless Timo Hildebrand in the 55th, as Bayern bounced back from Wednesdays 1-0 loss at FC Basel in the Champions League. Benoit Pouliot Jersey . -- The Tampa Bay Lightning are disappointed, though not discouraged.BARCELONA, Spain -- Torontos Daniel Nestor and Serbian Nenad Zimonjic defeated Croatian Ivan Dodig and Marcelo Melo of Brazil 6-4, 6-4 on Saturday to reach the doubles final at the Barcelona Open, their first clay-court championship event in a year. Nestor, 41, will chase a fifth tournament title when he and Zimonjic, seeded fifth, play either Jesse Huta Galang of the Netherlands and Frenchman Stephane Robert or Italys Fabio Fognini and Austrian Jurgen Melzer. Nestor and Zimonjic needed just over an hour to win their semifinal event after last week losing in the semifinal round at Monte Carlo to Americans Bob and Mike Bryan, the worlds top-ranked team. Nestor won the Barcelona title in 2004 and 2006 with Mark Knowles and in 2009 and 2010 alongside Zimonjic. Dodig and Melo lost to Nestor and his partner in last years quarter-finals. Nestor and Zimonjic won the doubles title in Sydney in January before dropping the Dubai final aa month later.dddddddddddd "We played a good match and its great to get to the final," said Nestor, with the win giving his team a bye in the upcoming Madrid Masters. "We played well in the first set and got a lead in the second. "We lost the game at 5-2 by getting a bit impatient but were able to creep back into it at the end." Nestor and Zimonjic earned the opening set on a break in the fifth game and also broke Melo in the fifth game of the second set. But leading 5-2, their play slipped somewhat, allowing their opponents to rally and save two match points along the way. Nestor closed out match with consecutive aces in the final game. "Weve been playing well since the start on the clay, we might even have won some games with luck," Nestor said. "But we are on good form and playing solid. "I think weve had those qualities in both of our weeks on the clay." 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