Madrid, November 20:

Eidur Gudjohnsen scored two goals on Sunday to help FC Barcelona remain in first place in the Spanish league after a 4-1 victory over Mallorca. Andres Iniesta and Santi Ezquerro also scored for Barcelona.

Gudjohnsen got around Mallorca goalkeeper Toni Prats in the 42nd minute and completed a well-worked move which also involved Thiago Motta, Ronaldinho and Deco. Sixteen minutes later, the Iceland striker slotted the ball past the advancing Prats after receiving a precise pass from Iniesta.

Mallorca reduced the deficit seven minutes later when substitute Victor Casadesus robbed defender Rafael Marquez and angled his shot past goalkeeper Victor Valdes. But Mallorca right back Fernando Varela received his second yellow card for a trip on Deco in the 82nd, and Iniesta scored a third goal in the 86th following Ronaldinho’s burst into the penalty area. Substitute Ezquerro added a late goal with a volley from Ronaldinho’s pass in injury time.

Also on Sunday, it was: Zaragoza 3, Gimnastic Tarragona 0; Levante 0, Atletico Madrid 3; Recreativo Huelva 2, Osasuna 0; Villarreal 1, Getafe 0; Espanyol 3, Athletic Bilbao 2; Real Sociedad 0, Real Betis 0; and Deportivo La Coruna 0, Celta Vigo 1.

Barcelona has 26 points, followed by Sevilla with 25 and Real Madrid with 23. Zaragoza has 22 points.

English Premiership

LONDON: Aston Villa was held to a 0-0 draw by Wigan, missing the chance to move into third place in the English Premier League.

Villa stayed in fifth place while Wigan moved up one place to ninth. Tottenham rallied to a 1-1 draw at Blackburn in a match where both clubs finished with 10 men. Wigan’s best chance came from midfielder Lee McCullough, who had an early header stopped by Aston Villa goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen and then sent the rebound over.

Wigan defender Emmerson Boyce almost deflected the ball into the net, but it was cleared by Villa defender Liam Ridgwell. For Aston Villa, captain Gareth Barry sent a shot over the crossbar in the 52nd minute, and Peter Whittingham clipped the outside of the right post.

Blackburn’s Tugay Kerimoglu scored with a 25-yard volley in the 23rd minute. He was sent off in the 60th minute for a foul on Hossam Ghaly. Jermain Defoe made it 1-1 from the resulting penalty kick in the 62nd. Blackburn goalkeeper Brad Friedel dived to his right but couldn’t get to the ball in time.

Manchester United leads with 34 points after a 2-1 win over Sheffield United on Saturday. Wayne Rooney scored twice. Defending champions Chelsea is second with 31 points after a 1-0 win over West Ham. Arsenal slipped further off the pace, drawing 1-1 at home against Newcastle.