Barcelona Seek Redemption Against Getafe

Barcelona can prove they have learned a lesson from their most humiliating defeat of the season when they host Getafe in the Primera Liga.

Barcelona can prove they have learned a lesson from their most humiliating defeat of the season when they host Getafe in the Primera Liga on Saturday.

With three games to go there is no room left for slip-ups as the top four sides are separated by a mere four points.

The defending champions are level on 69 with Real Madrid but are kept off the top by their inferior head-to-head record.

Two weeks ago, modest Getafe wrecked Barca's hopes of completing a league and cup double by overturning a 5-2 deficit from the first leg of their King's Cup semi-final.

Getafe ran them ragged to win 4-0 in the second leg, rocking Barca to the core. The setback provoked a hostile reaction from fans and the media, who accused them of complacency.

Three days later, Barca stumbled to a 1-1 draw at home to struggling Real Betis, which cost them the leadership of the table and cast doubts over the squad's state of mind.

"In the Getafe game it was as if they were playing with 24 players and I only hope that we are like they were on Saturday in the Nou Camp," said Barca striker Samuel Eto'o, who admitted crying from frustration after that game.

Barca were more like the side of old last weekend when they trounced sixth-placed Atletico Madrid 6-0 away and they are unbeaten at home.

Getafe were also in fine form, however, thrashing Espanyol 5-1 away, and have more than proved their credentials against the traditional big guns of the league.

When Frank Rijkaard's side take to the pitch on Saturday evening, they will already know how leaders Real have fared in the Bernabeu against mid-table Deportivo Coruna.

REAL CONSISTENCY

Real have won eight of their last nine games, and scored 14 times in the last four, but needed heart-stopping winners in the final minutes to win the last two.

Real goalkeeper Iker Casillas hit back at critics who said they had been lucky.

"The league rewards consistency. I thought it was sad Italy won the World Cup for the way they played but over 35 games we have been the most consistent side and we deserve respect for that," he said.

Should either of the top two fail, UEFA Cup winners and King's Cup finalists Sevilla are only two points adrift in third.

They have tough a match at home against fifth-placed Real Zaragoza on Sunday but are clear about their priorities.

"While winning the league is the big prize, finishing second is vital to avoid a difficult pre-season (in the Champions League qualifiers) that would require getting the team together earlier," said Sevilla coach Juande Ramos. Fourth-placed Valencia host regional rivals Villarreal on Saturday. Villarreal are just a point outside the UEFA Cup places in seventh having won five on the trot.

At the foot of the table, Celta Vigo and Gimnastic Tarragona could be relegated if results go against them.