best 26th goal led Barcelona to a 1-0 victory at Valladolid, while Gonzalo Higuain's second-half score helped Real Madrid beat Malaga 1-0 to keep pace with the Spanish league leader on Saturday. Xavi Hernandez chipped Eto'o's pass back to him as he ran into the area in the 40th minute, and the Cameroon striker volleyed a lob over onrushing goalkeeper Sergio Asenjo to secure Barcelona's fifth straight league win. Barcelona has 72 points from 29 games, while second-place Madrid stayed within six of its classic rival by stretching its unbeaten league run to 14 games thanks to Higuain's fifth goal against Malaga this season. The Argentine striker, who notched four against Malaga at Santiago Bernabeu in November, picked up a ball inside his own half in the 49th and finished off his long run by sliding a right-footed shot inside the far post for his 16th goal. Sevilla has 57 points in third thanks to a 1-0 victory at Recreativo Huelva. Frederic Kanoute, who signed a two-year contract extension this week, converted a penalty in the 32nd for his 10th goal in eight games. Sevilla is unbeaten in seven games, with six wins, as it tries to secure a Champions League spot for next season. Also, Villarreal lost 3-0 at Almeria to remain in fourth with 48 points, five ahead of Atletico Madrid, Valencia, Deportivo La Coruna and Malaga. Villarreal, which tackles Arsenal in the Champions League quarterfinals on Tuesday, suffered a major blow when midfielder Santi Cazorla broke his right leg. After losing 6-0 at Barcelona last November, Valladolid held its free-scoring visitors in check at Jose Zorrilla Stadium. Barcelona, which welcomed back midfielder Andres Iniesta (thigh) and captain Carles Puyol (ankle), nearly took the lead after four minutes, but Seydou Keita headed Xavi's cross wildly over goal with only Asenjo to beat. Xavi, coming off a strong performance in Spain's 2-1 win at Turkey in midweek, sidefooted a clear chance from the top of the area over goal in the 35th. Marcos Aguirre had a chance for Valladolid but curled his shot straight at Victor Valdes in the 55th, and the Barcelona goalkeeper got a hand out three minutes later to deny Damian Escudero. Lionel Messi went on as a substitute following Argentina's 6-1 loss at high altitude in Bolivia on Wednesday, but Valladolid continued to create better chances. Javi Martinez slid an 84th-minute shot under substitute goalkeeper German Lux to give Athletic Bilbao a 2-1 win over Mallorca and end a four-game losing skid. Carlos Aranda scored two goals, including an injury-time penalty, as second-bottom Numancia drew 3-3 at 10
