Xavi’s Barcelona has made the transition from a loose gang of talented individuals to a battle-hardened unit that’s impossible to beat!The Catalans won away at Villarreal on Sunday night to open up an eleven-point lead over rivals Real Madrid at the top of La Liga standings. It wasn’t a vintage performance, it wasn’t even particularly pretty, but this team has got a clear goal and everyone is determined to get the job done – even if it means not playing the famed tiki-taka or scoring bucketloads of goals.Young gun Pedri scored the only goal inside the opening 20 minutes and that’s all they needed!Tonight’s result made it eleven consecutive wins for the Blaugrana team. The last time they tasted defeat was in late October, when Bayern defeated them in the Champions League. It’s a truly impressive run.##NAJAVA_MECA_7014725##Barca didn’t even have a shot on goal in the second half and had to survive a late scare. Samuel Chukwueze put the ball in the back of the net with just a minute to go, but the goal didn’t count because of an offside decision and the visitors could breathe a collective sigh of relief.This Barcelona isn’t the Barca of old – this Barca is a winning machine.LA LIGA – Matchday 21FridayCadiz – Girona 2-0 (2-0)/Escalante 6, Guardiola 34/SaturdayAlmeria – Betis 2-3 (1-2)/Suarez 27, Costa 62 – Rodri 6, Canales 42, Guardado 70/Sevilla – Mallorca 2-0 (2-0)/En Nesyri 28, Gil 40/Valencia – Ath.Bilbao 1-2 (1-1)/Castillejo 17 – Williams 30, Sancet 72/SundayGetafe – Rayo Vallecano 1-1 (0-1)/Unal 77 – Arambarri 38 og/Celta Vigo – Atletico Madrid 0-1 (0-0)/Depay 89/Valladolid – Osasuna 0-0Villarreal – Barcelona 0-1 (0-1)/Pedri 18/Monday23.00: (3.45) Espanyol (3.05) Sociedad (2.45)Wednesday23.00: (1.18) Real Madrid (8.00) Elche (19.0)***odds are subject to change
