La Liga
Cristiano Ronaldo really wants that Ballon D'Or as he netted yet another hat-trick in a 5 - 1 trouncing of Real Sociedad. The winger's treble means he scored 24 goals already this season, although he is fortunate that the Ballon d'Or ballot closes this Friday just before the playoff in which Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Sweden could dent his World Cup ambitions.
Meanwhile, Sevilla got back to winning ways against an out-of-form Espanyol to end their two-game losing streak.
Athletic Bilbao are in the hunt for a Top Four place as their 2 - 1 win over Valencia side Levante put them one point behind fourth-placed Villareal who managed to hold title-chasing Atletico Madrid to a 1 - 1 draw.
Barcelona took advantage to go three points clear at the top with a 4 - 1 win over bottom side Real Betis. Neymar, Pedro and Cesc Fabregas got the goals but it came as a cost as Messi was forced off in the first half with an "injury to the femoral bicep".
Serie A
Juventus' 3 - 0 win over Napoli was a good tactical game to watch. But Juve's last two goals were majestic.
The Bianconeri had taken the lead within two minutes thanks to striker Fernando Llorente's far post tap in. Juve were restricting Napoli to half-chances and made sure of the win in the final 20 minutes.
Pirlo curled in yet another trademark free-kick but it was Paul Pogba who stole the show. Flicking up the ball outside the box, the Frenchman unleashed a venomous volley which beat Pepe Reina and boosted Juve's title hopes.
They are now one point behind Roma and three ahead of Napoli.
Juve will be delighted that Roma's wings have been clipped a wee bit. Last week, the Giallorossi ended their 10-game winning streak after drawing with Torino. But they would have expected to get back to winning ways against lowly Sassuolo, especially at the Stadio Olimpico. But despite taking the lead via an own goal, the Romans contrived to conceded an injury time goal to dent their title chances.
Even if Roma are starting to shake a bit, Milan are shivering. A 0 - 0 draw at Chievo continues their worst start to a season in 30 years.
But manager Massimiliano Allegri is still clinging onto his job although time is running out as their winless run in Serie A stretches to four games. The international break cannot come soon off.
Inter will be cursing that break as their good form saw them see off Livorno 2 - 0 at home.
Bundesliga
Bayern Munich took a first decisive step to retaining their title, thanks to Borussia Dortmund's 2 - 1 defeat at Wolfsburg.
Die Roten beat Augsburg 3 - 0 at home and Jerome Boateng's opener was a fine finish from a tight angle.
Boaten'g striker as well as Franck Ribery and a Thomas Muller penalty saw Bayern set a Bundesliga record of 37 games without defeat.
Meanwhile, there will be slight worries at Dortmund as their loss at Wolfsburg followed a home defeat to Arsenal three days earlier.
Bayer Leverkusen got back to winning ways as South Korean Heung Son Min's hat-trick helped them to a 5 - 3 win over Hamburg.
Ligue 1
Monaco lost ground again in the Ligue 1 title race as their draw against Evian left them five points behind league leaders PSG who beat Nice 3 - 1 at the Parc de Princes.
As Ronaldo netted a hat-trick, Ibrahimovic matched him stride by stride with his own hat-trick.
Second placed Lille also missed the opportunity to close the gap as they failed to beat eight-placed Guincamp away.
Super Lig
Galatasaray's poor season continued as they lost the Istanbul derby 2 - 0 to rivals Fenerbahce.
Roberto Mancini's side remain sixth, while Fener go four points clear of Kasimpasa where Roy Keane could have been in charge if things had turned out differently.
