Messi, Suarez restore Barca’s yawning gap

Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez scored first-half goals in a 3-0 win over Levante yesterday, restoring Barcelona’s nine-point lead of the Spanish football league.

Messi marked his 400th appearance in La Liga by giving Barcelona the early lead and taking his record in the competition to 365 goals. Suarez doubled the advantage before halftime, before Messi set up Paulinho to round off the win in stoppage time.

Atletico Madrid were left a distant second after temporarily closing the gap by beating Getafe 2-0.

The win took Barcelona’s unbeaten streak to 27 games.

Ousmane Dembele started for Barcelona and played just more than an hour before being substituted in his second appearance since returning from a left-leg injury that sidelined him since mid-September.

Levante, despite their modest squad, counter-attacked well and threatened through striker Emmanuel Boateng.

But Messi, yet again this season, connected with left back Jordi Alba, who headed back his pass for the forward to use one touch to volley in off the far post in the 12th minute and record his league-leading 16th goal of the season.

Javier Mascherano started for Barcelona amid widespread speculation that he wanted to leave in search of more playing time. The defender helped set up Barcelona’s second by lobbing a pass over Levante’s defence, where Sergi Roberto used one touch to send it to Suarez in the 38th, and the striker swept in his 11th goal of the season.

Messi finished the match by dribbling to the endline and squaring a pass for Paulinho to tap in for his seventh goal of the season.