Watch: Five things we learned in European football this weekend
Zinedine Zidane marked his return to the Real Madrid dugout with a victory although Lionel Messi again stole the show in Spain with a magnificent hat-trick as Barcelona continued their march towards the La Liga title.
AFP Sport looks at what we learned from the weekend's key action across the continent:
Zidane picks up where he left off
Zinedine Zidane may have made a winning start to his second spell as coach of Real Madrid but Barcelona look to have the La Liga title already sewn up.
Barca blew away Real Betis 4-1 on Sunday as Lionel Messi scored his fourth hat-trick of the season and 51st of his career, prompting even the Betis fans to stand and applaud.
The Catalans now have a 10-point lead over Atletico Madrid, who were beaten 2-0 by Athletic Bilbao on Saturday, four days after their Champions League heartache at the hands of Juventus.
Real's hopes of catching Barcelona were already all but over but Zidane has at least lifted the gloom.
He recalled a handful of old favourites against Celta Vigo on Saturday, including Isco, who scored the opener, before Gareth Bale -- who was not always appreciated by Zidane in the coach's first spell -- added another in a 2-0...