REAL MADRID moved seven points clear at the top of La Liga with a comfortable 3-1 win over bottom side Real Zaragoza as Barcelona could only draw 0-0 at lowly Villarreal on Saturday night.

Barca’s pursuit of a fourth consecutive league title is now an even tougher task as they seek to catch Jose Mourinho’s men after yet another poor showing on the road where five draws and one defeat has taken its toll.

The European and Spanish champions were down to the bare bones at the Madrigal with Pedro a late addition to their growing injury list that includes striker David Villa and midfielder Andres Iniesta.

Lionel Messi lobbed just wide during a stale first half and Barca threw men forward near the end, fielding Alexis Sanchez as a substitute despite him playing with a shoulder injury, but they could not beat home goalkeeper Diego Lopez.

The Spanish international denied Messi in a one-on-one in the closing minutes and with the goal gaping, Fabregas booted the rebound high over the bar to complete a bad night for the visitors.

Angel Lafita gave Zaragoza a surprise early lead at the Bernabeu after a quickly taken free-kick in the 11th minute but thoughts of a first win since mid-October quickly disappeared.

Brazilian Kaka squeezed a low shot under Roberto to level in the 32nd minute and Cristiano Ronaldo tapped in his 24th league goal of the campaign at the start of the second half.The lively Mesut Ozil netted with a fierce drive after a slick passing move in the 56th to complete the scoring.

Aritz Aduriz came off the bench to score twice for third-placed Valencia as they drew 2-2 away to Santander.