Messi scores brace as Barca defeat Las Palmas in empty Camp Nou
Sergio Busquets opened the scoring for Barcelona.
Lionel Messi scored a brace as Barcelona eased past Las Palmas 3-0 on a surreal Sunday afternoon at the Camp Nou.
The match was played behind closed doors after earlier calls for it to be suspended due to the situation in Catalonia on Sunday.
There had been tension across the region throughout the morning as Spanish police attempted to shut down various polling stations for a referendum, deemed illegal by the Spanish government, on independence.
That led to calls for Barca to postpone their game amid fears there would not be adequate policing. Shortly before kickoff, the club announced that the match would take place but with no fans in attendance.
In front of a sea of empty seats, Sergio Busquets opened the scoring for the Liga leaders when he headed Lionel Messi's corner home at the near post in the 49th minute.
Messi added a second in the 70th minute, expertly rounding goalkeeper Leandro Chichizola after collecting a through ball from Denis Suarez.
And he completed his double seven minutes later, sliding home a Luis Suarez's pass from close range.
The win makes it 21 points from seven matches, while Las Palmas remain on six points.
Real Sociedad and Real Betis produced an eight-goal thriller as they drew 4-4 at the Anoeta.
Visitors Betis went ahead after six minutes when striker Antonio Sanabria scored for the third successive game, but Willian Jose levelled and Mikel Oyarzabal struck in the 26th minute to put Sociedad in front before Zouhair Feddal equalised two minutes later.
Joaquin put Betis in front seconds into the second half, but Sociedad were level again when Xabi Prieto equalised at the far post in the 57th minute.
Substitute Sergio Leon looked to have won it for Betis six minutes from time, but Diego Llorente's 86th-minute header secured an incredible and ended a run of four Sociedad defeats in all competitions.
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Source: espn.co.uk
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