La Liga Week 10 Standings & Table: Real Madrid Remains Undefeated, Tied With Barcelona For First Place
Another exciting soccer week of La Liga is in the books.
Real Madrid is pretty banged up with key injuries to Karim Benzema, Gareth Bale and James Rodriguez, but Cristiano Ronaldo once again came through in the clutch. Ronaldo lit the lamp in the 14th minute of play against Las Palmas, and Real Madrid eventually won the match, 3-1. Ronaldo now has eight La Liga goals this season, and they will be preparing for a UEFA Champions League game this week against Paris Saint-Germain.
Anyway, back to La Liga. With that win, Rafael Benítez's club is now 7-3-0. Real Madrid is the only team in the Spanish Premier League that has yet to lose a single game. Real Madrid is always one of the favorites to win it all, but that's impressive considering they have had so many injuries.
By far the biggest reason Real Madrid has not lost a game is because of defense. They have allowed just four goals in 10 games, by far the fewest in the entire league. For some perspective, Levante has allowed 22 goals so far. Real Madrid plays Sevilla in their next La Liga game.
As for Barcelona, they are managing quite well despite the fact they don't have Lionel Messi. Messi's return date remains up in the air, but we do know that he will miss the El Clasico on Nov. 21. There's a good chance we will not see Messi return until December.
Even though the Argentine superstar has been out, others have been stepping up big time in his absence, specifically Neymar and Luis Suarez. The South American duo have scored a combined 17 goals this season, including the last 11 for Barcelona in La Liga. Luis Enrique and Barcelona fans couldn't ask for much more. Even though Messi is out, they are still tied for first place.
Since losing to Sevilla in Week 7, Barcelona has won their last three consecutive games. They get a pretty big test in their next game against fifth place Villarreal. That game will be at home where Barcelona hasn't lost yet this season. With goalkeeper Claudio Bravo back from his calf injury and Barcelona playing well without Messi, you can bet this team will once again give Real Madrid a run for their money.
Atletico Madrid is hanging around, but they suffered a devastating draw in Week 10. Leading 1-0 over ninth place Deportivo in the 77th minute, Atletico Madrid allowed a goal and the game ended 1-1. Instead of getting the full three points, Atletico Madrid left Deportivo with just one point. It wasn't a lose, but it sure felt like one.
Villarreal's slump continued. After a promising 5-1 start, Villarreal has failed to win each of their last three games. Celta Vigo suffered their first loss of the season against Real Sociedad.
La Liga Standings
1. Real Madrid: 7-3-0, 24 points
2. Barcelona: 8-0-2, 24 points
3. Celta Vigo: 6-3-1, 21 points
4. Atletico Madrid: 6-2-2, 20 points
5. Villarreal: 6-2-2, 20 points
Follow Damon Salvadore on Twitter @DamonSalvadore1