Saturday Soccer: FC Barcelona vs. Deportivo La Coruna

After tying Real Madrid in their last game, Barcelona was looking to keep up their 8 point lead.  Barcelona broke the game open quickly, coming out to a 3-0 lead after the 17th minute.  They received goals from Jordi Alba, Messi and Tello. Deportivo started their comeback with a penalty kick goal which shouldn't have been called - it was a foul, but it was outside of the box.  By half time, Deportivo brought the score back up to 3-2, before Messi made it 4-2 at half time.  Only 2 minutes into the second half, Deportivo's Pizzi scored a beautiful free kick just a few yards outside the box to make it 4-3. Shortly after, Barcelona's Mascherano received his second yellow for hitting Deportivo's Ricky with an inadvertent shoulder.  With a completely make shift back line (Puyol, Pique, Alves, Mascherano all out), Barcelona was forced to try to run the clock out, playing conservatively until Messi, completing his hat trick, gave Barcelona some breathing room with a 5-3 advantage. Barcelona's joy didn't last long.  Two minutes after Messi's goal, it was Jordi Alba with an own goal to bring Deportivo right back into the game.  Luckily, Barcelona was able to hold on to secure the win and keep their 8 point lead over Real Madrid.