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Cristiano Ronaldo scored a stunning solo goal and Rafael van der Vaart struck the winner to give Real Madrid a 2-1 comeback win at mid-table Almeria on Thursday and keep their La Liga title hopes alive.
Last year's champions Barca followed up Saturday's 2-0 victory over Real with a 3-0 home win against Deportivo Coruna on Wednesday to go six points clear on 83 but Real's success in Andalucia has trimmed the gap back to three with six games left.
Albert Crusat gave Almeria a shock lead in the 14th minute at their Juegos Mediterraneos stadium before World Cup-bound Portugal forward Ronaldo sliced through the home defence to level with an angled shot in the 27th.
Real midfielder Guti struck a powerful drive against the post three minutes later and Gonzalo Higuain had an effort cleared off the line before Van der Vaart lashed home from just outside the penalty area in the 69th.
"We still have a chance to win the league but we have to win all our remaining matches," Van der Vaart said in a pitch-side television interview.
"I had a lot of chances and missed two or three in the first half so I'm very happy with the goal," added the midfielder, who will be a key member of the Netherlands team at the World Cup.
Real, having been knocked out of the Champions League and the King's Cup, remain in danger of ending the season without any silverware despite an investment of close to a quarter of a billion euros ($341 million) in players for this season.
European champions Barca, who play the first leg of their Champions League semi-final against Inter Milan on Tuesday, can take their lead back to six points with a win at city rivals Espanyol on Saturday. Real host third-placed Valencia on Sunday.
Valencia are a massive 24 points behind Real ahead of their match at home to Athletic Bilbao later on Thursday.
(Editing by Ken Ferris;
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