Spanish midfielder Carles Alena celebrating with Barcelona's Uruguayan forward Luis Suarez after scoring a goal during the Spanish league football match against Deportivo Alaves at the Mendizorroza stadium in Vitoria on Tuesday — AFP MADRID, Apr 24 (AP): Now it's just a matter of time for Barcelona.
The Catalan club is on the brink of another Spanish league title after beating Alaves 2-0 on Tuesday to move within three points of clinching the championship. And that was with Lionel Messi staying on the bench until after both goals had been scored.
The celebrations for a second consecutive league trophy - and eighth in 11 seasons - could even start as early as Wednesday if Atletico Madrid loses at home against fifth-place Valencia. If not, a win against relegation-threatened Levante at home on Saturday would also secure Barcelona a 26th league title.
Carles Alena and and Luis Suarez scored goals six minutes apart after halftime to leave Barcelona 12 points ahead of Atletico. If Diego Simeone's team fails to earn at least a draw, it won't be able to catch Barcelona in the final four matches because it loses to the Catalan club on the head-to-head tiebreaker.
Messi entered the game in the 61st minute to replace Ousmane Dembele. It was the third time in seven matches that Valverde rested the Argentine playmaker, who also started on the bench in a 4-4 draw against Villarreal and missed the team's 0-0 draw against relegation-threatened Huesca.
Earlier, Huesca beat Eibar 2-0 to move 19th, while Real Valladolid climbed to 15th with a 1-0 win over Girona, leaving their visitors in 17th place.
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