Madrid: Real Madrid must quickly forget its Champions League setback if it wants to keep pressure on Barcelona as the Spanish leader homes in on a third straight league title as both clubs come up against teams battling to avoid the drop.
Barcelona took a big step toward reaching the Champions League final in an ill-tempered 2-0 semifinal first-leg win at Madrid on Wednesday.
Madrid trails Barcelona by eight points with five matches to play starting on Saturday against Zaragoza, which is battling to avoid relegation.
Madrid shouldn't have problems with Zaragoza although morale may be low as the club has little hope of reaching its first European final since 2002. Although the league is still in sight, Madrid knows the possibility is slim with a Copa del Rey triumph over Barcelona shaping up to be the only silverware of coach Jose Morinho's first season in charge.
Mourinho is likely to rest most of his regulars again and rely on his "B-team" of Kaka, Karim Benzema and Gonzalo Higuain after it easily routed third-place Valencia 6-3 last Saturday.
Meanwhile, Lionel Messi looks to follow up his brace against Real by adding to his league-leading tally of 31 goals and season tally of 52 when Barcelona plays at Real Sociedad.
The Argentina forward again showed his class with a sublime individual effort as he dashed through Madrid's half and around three defenders before slotting past goalkeeper Iker Casillas for his 179th club goal to move into third all-time at Barcelona.
"It's not the first time he's done this, it's worth noting how lucky we are to have him," Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola said. "He's only 23 and he's now the third leading scorer at the club, with its long, long history. That says it all. It's incredible. That's what is beautiful about our game and our football."
Messi did not train with the team on Thursday after appearing to emerge from Wednesday's victory with a leg injury.
Defender Carles Puyol played a 90 minutes for the first time since January, with Barcelona's defense without Eric Abidal, Adriano and Maxwell, who may return from a groin injury. But Guardiola may have to field several youth team players since midfielder Andres Iniesta may also be saved for Tuesday's return leg against Madrid.
Sociedad has seen its impressive first half of the season marred by a second-half slide to sit only three points above Osasuna, which is in the last relegation spot ahead of its game against Valencia on Sunday.
Last-place Almeria could be the first team relegated if it loses to Sevilla on Sunday, depending on other results.
Almeria has lost five straight to trail Zaragoza by 11 points and comes up against a Sevilla team looking to secure its place in next season's Europa League. Sixth-place Sevilla is tied with Atletico Madrid on points, with both trailing Athletic Bilbao by two points.
Bilbao can complicate Espanyol's hopes of finishing in the European places when the pair meet on Monday night. Atletico travels to Deportivo La Coruna, which is just three points above the relegation spots.
In Sunday's other 34th-round games, it's: Levante vs. Sporting Gijon; Malaga vs. Hercules; Racing Santander vs. Mallorca; and Villarreal vs. Getafe.
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