Barcelona will enter El Clasico on November 21 with a three-point lead at the top of La Liga after previously unbeaten Real Madrid lost 3-2 at Sevilla on Week 11 in Spain's top flight.
The two Spanish giants were level on points entering the latest round of fixtures, but Barcelona temporarily moved three points clear with a 3-0 win over Villarreal on Sunday afternoon.
It was then up to Real Madrid to respond away to Sevilla in Week 11's final match, but Rafael Benitez's side gave up a first-half lead to lose by the odd goal in five at the Estadio Ramon.
It did appear that Atletico Madrid would lose more ground on the summit after struggling to break down a stern Sporting Gijon side, but a late effort from Antoine Griezmann moved Diego Simeone's side into third and now just one point off second-place Real Madrid.
The latest round of fixtures kicked off in Las Palmas on Friday, with the struggling hosts recording a 2-0 win over Real Sociedad, which has reportedly left David Moyes facing the sack.
Valencia sent out a message in Saturday's early fixture with a 5-1 win at Celta Vigo, who remain fourth on 21 points despite the heavy defeat. Elsewhere, Levante are still rooted to the bottom of the division following a 1-1 draw against Deportivo La Coruna.
Eibar are still a top-six side after beating Getafe 3-1 on Saturday, before Rayo Vallecano recorded a 2-1 win over Granada, who remain second from bottom. There was also another win for Real Betis, who triumphed 1-0 at struggling Malaga.
As mentioned, Sunday brought wins for Barcelona, Atletico and Sevilla, but there was also a 2-1 victory for Athletic Bilbao, who have moved into the top eight after beating Espanyol at San Mames.
Here, Sports Mole has picked out its star XI from the latest round of action.
Sergio Rico (Sevilla)
Seems to be nailed-on for a spot at Euro 2016 with Spain and the 22-year-old deserves it as he continues to put in excellent performances. Real Madrid scored twice in their 3-2 loss at Sevilla on Saturday, but it would have been more but for the performance of Rico, who made a number of excellent saves at key stages of the contest. Difficult to imagine the home side would have won if their stopper had not been in such fine form.
Luis Hernandez (Sporting Gijon)
Antoine Griezmann's stoppage-time header saw Atletico record all the points against Sporting on Sunday, but the performance of the visitors cannot be overlooked. As expected, it was mainly a rear-guard display from Sporting, who had to spend most of the game on the back foot. At the heart of the team was Hernandez, who made a number of sensational blocks and was also calm and composed in possession.
Shkodran Mustafi (Valencia)
It has been a difficult start to the season for Valencia and indeed for Mustafi, who has long been linked with the likes of Barcelona and Real Madrid. That speculation might have impacted his performances this term, but the German was back to his best on Saturday as Los Che recorded a 5-1 win at Celta. It was the centre-back that completed the scoring late on, but his defensive work was what impressed the most.
Benoit Tremoulinas (Sevilla)
The French defender had an excellent game as Sevilla came from behind to beat Real Madrid on Sunday. Even when his team were struggling, the left-back was always prepared to take possession of the ball and he caused Danilo all sorts of problems in a wide area. Los Blancos just could not deal with Tremoulinas's delivery from a wide position and he really should have finished the game with a couple of assists.
Dani Parejo (Valencia)
Valencia put their early-season frustrations behind them with a five-star performance against Celta at the weekend. Parejo has been guilty of underperforming this season, but this was much more like it from the captain, who scored twice and indeed provided two assists in Los Che's 5-1 win. Celta just could not cope with the midfielder's movement and manipulation of the ball as Nuno's side ran riot on Saturday afternoon.
Ever Banega (Sevilla)
It appeared that it would be a frustrating evening for the Argentine after Real Madrid made such a strong start against Sevilla, but Banega's class told in the end. It was the midfielder that scored his team's second just past the hour to send the hosts on their way to all three points. The 27-year-old was more than prepared to help out in a defensive area, but it was his attacking work that really impressed this weekend.
Sergio Busquets (Barcelona)
Barcelona boss Luis Enrique recently branded Busquets 'the best midfielder in the world' and it is difficult to argue with that statement at the moment. It was another sensational performance from the Spanish international at the weekend as his team recorded a 3-0 win over Villarreal. Busquets played a beautiful pass into Neymar for the game's opening goal, while he was class personified in possession.
Sergi Enrich (Eibar)
Eibar have perhaps been the surprise story of the season, with their points total after 11 games enough to keep them in the top six. They have only lost one of their last seven in the league, meanwhile, and that was against leaders Barcelona. Their latest fixture brought a 3-1 win over Getafe and it was 25-year-old Enrich that scored each of his team's first two goals. He was energetic and dangerous in a forward position.
Paco Alcacer (Valencia)
The third Valencia player to make this XI, Alcacer will join up with the Spain squad off the back of an excellent performance against Celta on Saturday. His club form has been a bit hit-and-miss this season, but that was not the case in Vigo as the striker scored twice and also set up Parejo for Valencia's fourth of the afternoon. The 22-year-old's movement and work-rate were of a very high level at the Balaidos.
Javi Guerra (Rayo Vallecano)
It did not quite happen for the 33-year-old in Wales, but he continues to find the back of the net in La Liga. In fact, a double against Granada at the weekend means that the striker now has eight goals in nine league appearances for Rayo this season. The experienced frontman provided a brilliant out-ball for his team at the weekend and his early double was enough for Rayo to record all three points in Madrid.
Neymar (Barcelona)
Surely the form player in world football at the moment. The Brazilian took his La Liga tally to 11 for the season with another brace in Barcelona's 3-0 win over Villarreal on Sunday. His first was an excellent near-post finish, but his second was one of the best goals of the season. Villarreal just could not live with the attacker's excellence as he once again caused devastation alongside Luis Suarez in the final third.
