Madrid's earlier kick-off on Saturday night means that if they can defeat relegation-threatened Tenerife then they will move a point clear at the summit ahead of Barca's late match against Malaga.

Barca are still firm favourites to defeat Malaga but with coach Pep Guardiola admitting this week that his sextuple winners are struggling to find top gear at the minute, Madrid will be keen to turn the heat up on their arch-rivals.

Madrid midfielder Lassana Diarra does not necessarily believe Barca are as vulnerable as some are suggesting, but he acknowledges his side need to make the most of any blips the Catalan giants might make.

"I`ve seen Barcelona's last few matches and I don`t think they have a problem. If you asked me if they are weaker than last season, maybe yes, maybe no. A team cannot be at 100% all the time. But we have to take advantage of the small slips they might have," he said.

Manuel Pellegrini`s side make the trip to the Canary Islands having thrashed Villarreal 6-2 last weekend, and they will be confident of picking up another three-point haul against second-bottom Tenerife, who have struggled on their return to the top flight.

However, Madrid defender Sergio Ramos is not about to underestimate Jose Luis Oltra`s men, who have won 18 of their 20 points this season at home.

"They`ve earned their place in the Primera Division. They have two good goalscorers in Nino and (Alejandro) Alfaro and we will have to be careful against them," said the Spain international.

Barca`s last three matches have seen them lose 2-1 at Atletico Madrid - their first league defeat of the season - then beat Racing Santander 4-0 last weekend before drawing 1-1 at Stuttgart in the Champions League in midweek.

The results may not be bad for Barca, but the team feel their performances have not been up to scratch, with Lionel Messi saying after the draw in Stuttgart: "It's true that recently we've not been playing the same football we are used to, but now is the key moment and we have to get back to that level."

Centre-back Gerard Pique believes his side`s indifferent form is nothing to be worried about, though, saying: "Playing at such a high level for a whole year is impossible - the same thing happened to us last year . There's always going to be a dip at some point, but the team will get their confidence and bounce back."

Aside from the top two, there is one other game in La Liga on Saturday night when Getafe host 17th-placed Real Zaragoza.

Zaragoza are one of four teams who are starting to slip away at the foot of the table, with a four-point gap having opened up to 16th-placed Racing Santander.

The other sides battling to avoid the drop are rock-bottom Xerez, who are 10 points adrift of safety as they prepare to host Espanyol, Tenerife, and third-bottom Real Valladolid, who take on stuttering Real Mallorca.

Two of Sunday`s other games involve four teams who will have been in European action this week.

Fourth-placed Sevilla, fresh from their encouraging 1-1 Champions League draw away to CSKA Moscow, are at home to Europe League contenders Athletic Bilbao, while third-placed Valencia go to Atletico Madrid, with both teams also in Europa League action this evening.

Also on Sunday, Villarreal, Spain`s other Europa League representative, take on Deportivo La Coruna, Osasuna travel to Sporting Gijon and Racing host Almeria.