Topics: La Liga, Real Sociedad, Mallorca, Barcelona, Valencia, Karim Benzema
Los Culés claimed a huge win in their quest to go back to the top five, while the Txuri-urdin side nabbed the top spot of the league all to themselves.

It was an interesting set of games in La Liga despite the absence of some of the top contenders to win the title. There were two major changes in the standings that had an effect on the top five teams, and the upcoming games in the league might end up being crucial for the general outcome of the competition.

There were two postponed games featuring Real Madrid and Atlético, which became a good sign for teams such as Real Sociedad, Sevilla, and even Barcelona, who are now closer to those that are supposed to fight for the crown despite their worrisome start of the season.

With that in mind, let's have a look at what went down in the past few days in La Liga.

Who are the top five La Liga teams after Matchday 9?

As mentioned before, Real Madrid were forced to surrender the top spot in the league to Real Sociedad, who now lead La Liga with 20 points, Los Blancos also saw Sevilla level them on points (17), although their better goal difference is still enough to keep them in second. The surprising Osasuna, who collected another win this weekend, are fifth with the same number of points as Real Madrid, Sevilla, and defending champions Atlético.

La Liga top 3 scorers

Karim Benzema did not have to play to keep his top spot in the top scorer department, as his nearest competitor, Mikel Oyarzabal, was unable to find the back of the net with Real Sociedad. The same goes for Vinicius, who has seen his goalscoring drought extended to over a month, although his lack of goals this week was caused by Real Madrid's inactivity.

La Liga – Top headlines

  • Memphis delivers key performance for Barcelona's surge vs Valencia - The Dutch footballer was crucial for Barcelona's comeback win against Valencia, scoring once and handing out an assist to finish the game off. This was the first time in which he managed to do so for Los Culés, and in fact, he broke a two-year hoodoo without recording a goal and an assist at the same game in all comps.

  • Real Sociedad match two records in win against Mallorca - The current league leaders came this close to blowing their chance of claiming the top spot, but a late goal secured them the first place and matching two records. The first one has to do with their unbeaten run of eight games at Reale Arena, which matches their best streak since 2015. The other record has to do with their ability to keep clean sheets, since they have kept five in their last five games at home. No wonder why they are top of the league at this point of the tournament!

  • Real Betis ace hits milestone with late assist on Monday - Legendary midfielder Joaquín added one more record to his tally with his antics against Alavés, since he managed to get an assist to break the tie as time expired. That assist by Joaquín became the first for a 40-year-old player in La Liga in the entire 21st Century...and there may be more to come for the Spaniard.

Top matches to watch in La Liga on September Aug. 17-20, 2021

Barcelona vs Real Madrid: Need we say more? The hottest game of the season will see Los Culés host Los Blancos at Camp Nou with everything to play for. Koeman's team seems to be on the rise, while Los Blancos have struggled a bit lately to get wins. Regardless of how each team makes it to this game, it will be a match no one in the world should miss, and we will keep you posted on everything related to El Clásico at LiveSoccerTV.

Sevilla vs Levante: Los Hispalenses are right there fighting for the top spot in the league, while Levante are yet to win their first match of the season. It will be a battle between a potential title contender and one team that could face serious troubles to avoid relegation, which means that all bets should be off when these team collide.

Atlético Madrid vs Real Sociedad: The defending champions will put the league leaders to test this weekend when the Txuri-urdin make the trip to Wanda Metropolitano Stadium. Atlético are unbeaten against Real Sociedad in their past six games playing as hosts, which means that the Basque side will have to put up a real effort if they want to keep the top spot in La Liga all to themselves.

*Keep track of all the activity in the Spanish top-flight by following our dedicated La Liga competition page.