Villarreal didn´t let the Real Madrid´s celebration

Real Madrid crushed Athletic Bilbao 3-0 at the Santiago Bernabeu to edge closer to the Spanish title but Villarreal's 1-0 victory at Real Betis has put their celebrations on hold for at least another week

Madrid's victory means that with four games left to play they remain 10 points clear of Villarreal at the top of the table on 75 points and will claim their 31st league title if they win next week's match at Osasuna.

Third-placed Barcelona, who are four points behind the Yellow Submarine after their 2-0 loss at Deportivo La Coruna on Saturday, can now only hope to dispute second place.

Argentine striker Javier Saviola paved the way for Madrid's victory when he took advantage of a rare appearance in the starting line-up to poke home after Bilbao goalkeeper Armando had spilled a shot from Robinho in the 13th minute. Home goalie Iker Casillas halted a Bilbao comeback when he produced a great one-handed stop to save a Joseba Garmendia penalty given after defender Gabriel Heinze had bundled into Fernando Llorente in the area late in the first half.

Madrid dominated after the break and gained a deserved second when Arjen Robben steered home from close range after a superb pass from Gonzalo Higuain and the Argentine wrapped up the win with a classy curling strike of his own two minutes later.