5 things we learned in La Liga this weekend

Madrid - Real Madrid took a significant step towards a first La Liga title in five years with a convincing 3-0 win over local rival Atletico Madrid thanks to Cristiano Ronaldo's hat-trick.

Barcelona fell four points behind Real as without the ill Lionel Messi the Blaugrana failed to break down nine-man Malaga.

We look at five things we learned from week 12 in La Liga.

Injuries force Real change for good

Real's first Madrid derby league win in four seasons was even more impressive given the absence of six key players with injury.

With strikers Alvaro Morata and Karim Benzema missing, coach Zinedine Zidane was forced into playing Ronaldo in a more central role.

Gareth Bale and Isco also shone in their more natural positions on the left and behind Ronaldo respectively as a much more balanced Real produced its best display of the season.

The key for Zidane is to now maintain that balance when some of his big names return to fitness in the coming weeks.

Atletico's defensive wall collapses

Atletico's third defeat in four league games looks to put an early end to the club's title ambitions as Diego Simeone's men trail Real by nine points and slipped down to sixth.

Simeone's success at Atletico has been built on a rock-solid defence, but in aiming to introduce more of an attacking edge to the play this season, that solidity has been lost.

For the first time in Simeone's reign, Atletico has conceded in five consecutive league games and Saturday's defeat was the first time since September 2012 Los Rojiblancos had conceded three goals at home in La Liga.

Unhealthy dependence on Messi returns

By uniting Messi with Luis Suarez and Neymar, Barca had hoped to not only arm itself with the most feared forward line in the world, but also ensure an end to what the Spanish press christened Messi-dependence during Pep Guardiola's reign in charge.

Without the injured Messi for two months last season, Neymar and Suarez ensured Barca gained rather than lost ground in the title race.

However, in all four of the 12 La Liga games Barca has failed to win this season, the Blaugrana has paid a heavy price for Messi not completing the 90 minutes.

The Argentine also missed a 4-3 defeat to Celta Vigo last month, limped off injured in a 1-1 draw with Atletico and couldn't turn around a shock 2-1 loss at home to Alaves in September after being left on the bench due to his commitments with Argentina.

Sociedad soaring

Things could get even worse for Barca ahead of El Clasico in two weeks' time as the Catalan club travels to a soaring Real Sociedad next weekend.

Sociedad has been Barca's bogey team in recent seasons, winning all of the last three meetings at home.

Eibar continues to impress

La Liga's loveable Basque minnow continued its brilliant early season form with a 1-0 win over Celta Vigo to move up to eighth.

Fran Rico's winner was Eibar's 100th La Liga goal in just the third season in the top flight.

And having already amassed a nine-point lead over the bottom three, a fourth La Liga campaign is already looking assured.