Madrid are currently nine points ahead of second-placed Barca with six games left, but Bernd Schuster's men face one of their toughest remaining fixtures on Sunday when they travel to fifth-placed Racing Santander.

Barca also have a potentially tricky match as they are at home to city rivals Espanyol, although Frank Rijkaard's side will fancy their chances against a team who have lost 11 of their last 14 matches.

Third-placed Villarreal are also not completely out of it yet and they face struggling Real Valladolid on Sunday looking to trim a 10-point gap to Madrid.

And Guti believes both the Yellow Submarine and Barca will continue to push his side hard.

"We are still not champions, but anybody would like to be in the position that we are. It would be better if we can win the title as soon as possible, but knowing Barcelona and Villarreal, they are going to fight until the end," said Guti, who is set to be suspended for the trip to El Sardinero, where hosts Racing have only lost three times this season.

Barca have only lost eight times in 73 league meetings with Espanyol at the Nou Camp, but with next week's Champions League semi-final first leg against Manchester United looming large, Rijkaard's men could have their minds on other things.

However, midfielder Xavi believes the derby offers his side the perfect chance to boost confidence ahead of their European showdown with United.

"Neither team (Barca and Espanyol) are really in a positive moment. Maybe we are thinking a little bit more about the Champions League, but the derby is always important and winning it gives you confidence," he said.

There are a number of huge games at the other end of the table as well this weekend, particularly at La Romareda where Real Zaragoza host Recreativo Huelva.

Zaragoza are currently third-bottom in the standings, three points behind 17th-place Recre, and know that anything other than a win on Saturday could mean second division football next season.

Rock-bottom Levante could cap what has been another forgettable week for the Valencia-based club by becoming the first team to be relegated.

They host Copa del Rey finalists Getafe having this week seen coach Gianni de Biasi jump ship and return to Torino, while on Thursday the players threatened a 48-hour strike for next weekend due to unpaid wages.

Jose Angel Moreno, the former technical director of Levante's youth teams, has taken over from De Biasi for the rest of the season.

Second-bottom Real Murcia, who are eight points from safety, are at home to Real Mallorca, while 15th-placed Valencia will hope their Copa del Rey final win this week will aid their bid to climb away from the drop zone as they travel to Athletic Bilbao.

This weekend's other matches pit Atletico Madrid against Real Betis, Sevilla versus Andalusian neighbours Almeria and Deportivo La Coruna at Osasuna.