BARCELONA, Spain — Luis Suarez set up two late goals to help Barcelona earn a 2-1 comeback victory at Almeria and break a two-game losing run in the Spanish league, while Cristiano Ronaldo scored again as Real Madrid stayed at the top of the table on Saturday.
With Barcelona trailing 1-0 and facing a costly defeat, Suarez came on at halftime and orchestrated the visitors’ fightback in his fourth appearance for his new team since completing a four-month biting ban.
The Uruguay forward used a burst of speed to shed his marker before crossing for fellow substitute Neymar to equalize in the 73rd minute. He then picked out Jordi Alba to grab the winner in the 82nd.
“Suarez gave a great assist to Neymar on the first goal and on the second he left me alone with the goalkeeper,” Alba said. “He has adapted well to the team.”
Madrid stayed two points ahead of Barcelona by routing Rayo Vallecano 5-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu for its 13th straight victory in all competitions.
Ronaldo polished off the lopsided win with his league-leading 18th goal and 23rd in all competitions this season.
The Ballon d’Or holder continued his unstoppable scoring run in the league and has now found the net in all 10 league games he has played in this season.
But it was another frustrating La Liga match for Barcelona’s Lionel Messi, coming three days after he scored twice to equal Raul Gonzalez’s 71-goal record in the Champions League.
A ball lost by Messi led to Almeria forward Bifouma Thievy putting the hosts ahead on a counterattack in the 37th.
Messi hit the crossbar with a header earlier in the first half, bringing to three the number of times he’s struck the woodwork in the last two league games as he also seeks to become the Spanish league’s record scorer. Messi has 250 league goals, one shy of Telmo Zarra’s record, which has stood untouched for nearly 60 years.
Suarez remained scoreless since his return from suspension, but his two assists saved his team.
Also, Malaga forward Nordin Amrabat converted an 89th-minute penalty to complete a 2-1 comeback at home over Eibar for a fifth straight win that lifted his team into sixth place.
Celta Vigo fell into seventh after being held 0-0 at home by Granada, while Getafe also drew 0-0 against visiting Elche.
Barcelona coach Luis Enrique rotated his lineup from Wednesday’s 2-0 win at Ajax, with Suarez, Neymar, Xavi Hernandez and Dani Alves all dropped from his starting 11.
With Andres Iniesta also out injured, Barcelona failed to establish an attacking rhythm.
After Thievy sped away from Marca Bartra to score, Luis Enrique wasted no time sending on Neymar and Suarez at halftime, but Barcelona didn’t start clicking until Xavi also followed in the 66th.
Suarez took over then with two excellent passes for Neymar and Alba after he too smashed the ball off the crossbar with an acrobatic volley.
Neymar turned Suarez’s low pass off a defender and into the net for his team-high 10th league goal of the season.
Suarez next spotted Alba running free at the far post, and the left back hit Suarez’s gentle cross over prone goalkeeper Ruben Martinez.
Barcelona provisionally moved into second place. Valencia and Atletico Madrid can overtake Barcelona with wins on Sunday.
Luis Enrique still wasn’t pleased his team cut the win so close.
“This was our worst match,” he said. “I don’t know what was behind our lack of precision in the first half. We didn’t come back through team play, rather through individual moments. They don’t cover up what we did wrong.”
In the capital, Toni Kroos scored his first goal for Madrid in an outstanding performance by the Germany midfielder.
Kroos recovered the ball and then fell wide to cross for Gareth Bale to poke in Madrid’s first goal in the ninth.
Sergio Ramos made it 2-0 in the 40th from a corner kick by James Rodriguez, but three minutes later Rodriguez’s poor backpass gifted Rayo forward Alberto Bueno a goal.
Kroos put the result beyond doubt in the 56th with a precise strike that curled along the turf and inside the post.
“Kroos was the best player on the pitch,” Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti said. “I’m not surprised by his level of play. His goal came on a counterattack, and he has liberty to go forward. When he goes forward, (Luka) Modric stays back. They make a good pair.”
Ronaldo crossed for Karim Benzema to net in the 59th before he got his goal in the 83rd when goalkeeper Cristian Alvarez let his shot squirm between his legs.
