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BARCELONA, Spain -- Lionel Messi scored twice to help Spanish leader Barcelona roll to a 5-0 win at Rayo Vallecano on Saturday, as coach Tito Vilanova established the best start for a first-year coach in the 113-year history of the Catalan club. Coby Fleener Youth Jersey . Cesc Fabregas set up David Villas 20th-minute opener to put Barcelona on its way. Messi then scored his 16th and 17th goals in all competitions this season in a second half that also saw Xavi Hernandez and Fabregas find the net. "This was our best game of the season," Fabregas said. Messis two strikes, the first an unstoppable blast from the edge of the box, the second a showcase of fancy footwork to undo the defence, took his league leading tally to 13 goals, four more than Atleticos Radamel Falcao and Real Madrids Cristiano Ronaldo. Messi has 73 goals for club and country in 2012, leaving him two shy of matching Brazil great Peles milestone of 75 in 1958. Barcelonas eighth win in its first nine games kept it unbeaten and lifted it three points ahead of Atletico before its game against last-place Osasuna on Sunday. The no-nonsense win also kept up Barcelonas pressure on Madrid by opening an 11-point gap ahead of the defending champions tough test at Mallorca. Barcelona needed an extra-time winner to beat Celtic in the Champions League midweek and had to score five times to edge out Deportivo La Coruna last weekend. But after weathering Rayos energized start, Vilanovas team eased to a victory which kept it perfect through five away outings in league play. "We played a serious game at the back and we go away satisfied because it is important to have kept a clean sheet," said Vilanova, whose defence had been suspect this season. "It isnt easy to win 25 of 27 possible points, but we deserve them. We always fight to the finish." Vilanova had his doubters after being tapped to replace Pep Guardiola this summer following the most successful run in the clubs history. But Guardiolas former assistant is exceeding expectations with a better debut than even his mentor managed in 2008 with seven wins, a draw and a loss. Sergio Busquets and Adriano played well in yet another makeshift combination in the centre of Barcelonas defence with Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique injured and Javier Mascherano suspended. Rayo coach Paco Jemez has insisted on his team playing on the attack all season despite its modest budget and limited talent. And despite its rivals intimidating pedigree, Rayo took the initiative early on at Vallecas Stadium in Madrid. Rayos pressure up the pitch earned three corner kicks in the first 10 minutes while disrupting Barcelonas passing attack and surprisingly disputing its usual domination of possession. But one pass by Fabregas, who assisted on three goals in last weekends wild 5-4 win at Deportivo, to meet Villas run inside from the left for the striker to slot home was all it took to turn the tables for good. "They were all over us, they didnt let us breathe, but we knew how to play through it," said Fabregas. "We knew we had to hang in there, but we got the goal and had more options." Messi decided the match shortly after halftime. Pedro played wide for back Martin Montoya to send in a cross that the Argentina forward controlled before ripping the ball beyond the goalkeeper with a vicious left-footed strike. Jemez was sent off in the 76th apparently for complaining about the refereeing. The loss of its manager unraveled Rayo, which left Xavi and Fabregas unmarked to volley in crosses in the 78th and 80th. Messi then cut through the demoralized defence and dribbled around the stranded goalie to score at pleasure a minute before time to record his sixth brace of the young season to with one hat trick. Also, Malaga remained third-- four points behind Atletico-- after drawing 0-0 at struggling Espanyol, while Salva Sevillas early goal gave Real Betis a 1-0 home win over Valencia. Betis victory lifted it provisionally into fourth place, trailing Malaga by two points. Madrid and Sevilla are both two points behind Betis heading into their games on Sunday. Also, Celta Vigo held on with 10 men for nearly 40 minutes to earn a 1-1 home draw with Deportivo in a regional Galicia derby in northwestern Spain. Elsewhere on Sunday, its: Real Zaragoza vs. Sevilla, Levante vs. Granada, and Athletic Bilbao vs. Getafe. Real Valladolid plays Real Sociedad on Monday. Pat Angerer Camo Jersey . Saskatchewan announced a deal Friday with the defensive back/kick returner, who joined the Riders last season in a trade with the Edmonton Eskimos. Mike McGlynn Jersey . Then he joined the Miami Heat, and things only got worse. Miami has lost seven of eight on the parquet floor since James arrived to form a superteam modeled after the new Big Three that hung the Celtics unprecedented 17th NBA championship banner. http://www.nflcoltsfansstore.com/nike-johnny-unitas-Colts-jersey/ . -- Tosaint Ricketts certainly didnt look like an unemployed soccer player. Delone Carter Jersey . Fortunately for Williams, the Otters offence woke up just in time to reward the rookie goaltender for the best game of his career. Jerrell Freeman Camo Jersey . Scott Cullen looks at the Penguins staying alive and the Red Wings dying a slow death Friday. A FLEURY OF ACTIVITYAfter an abysmal start to the series, Penguins G Marc-Andre Fleury earned his keep in the third period of Game Five, when the Flyers outshot the Penguins 14-8, yet couldnt score the equalizer, despite many quality chances.MONTREAL -- Going home empty-handed from the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver made Valerie Maltais more determined than ever to win at least one medal at the next Olympics. Since Vancouver, the 22-year-old has become one of the top skaters on the Canadian short-track speed skating team and she wants to be even better at the 2014 Games in Sochi, Russia. "I focused more after the Olympics," Maltais said Tuesday at the national team training centre at the Maurice Richard Arena. "I saw what it was to be on the top so I wanted to be better. "At the Olympics, it wasnt the performance of my life. I saw what I had to do. I had to focus and train more." Maltais was 19 at the Vancouver Games when she finished 14th in the 1,500-metre event and then was left off the four-woman relay team. She watched her teammates, led by Marianne St-Gelais, bask in the glow of winning silver medals on home ice, while on the mens side Charles Hamelin won the 5,000 metres and helped Canada to another gold in the relay. "I turned that emotion into motivation," the now 22-year-old Maltais said. "When Im having a hard time at practice, I always remember what happened at the Olympics and it kind of gives me energy to finish practice." Maltais will be a leader on the Canadian team that will begin the fall portion of the World Cup season, which begins Oct. 19-21 in Calgary, followed by another meet Oct. 26-28 in Montreal. Other World Cups begin Nov. 30 in Japan and Dec. 7 in Shanghai. She was named Speed Skating Canadas female athlete of the year for the 2011-12 season after finishing second overall at the world championships in Shanghai, which included a gold medal in the 3,000-metre race and bronze at 1,000 metres. "She was really strong," said Yves Hamelin, the teams program director. "By a little bit, she could have been (overall) world champion. "She fell on her own at the start of the 500 metres and she was the fastest in the previous rounds, so it was impressive. Her performance is still moving up. Shes gaining experience and confidence. In terms of the timing for Sochi, shell be solid." She is joined on the womens World Cup team by St-Gelais, of St-Felicien, Que., Marie-Eve Drolet of Laterriere, Que., Jessica Gregg of Edmonton, Jessica Hewwitt of Kamloops, B. Adam Vinatieri Womens Jersey. C., and Caroline Truchon of Chicoutimi, Que. The mens team has Charles Hamelin and his brother Francois, both of Ste-Julie, Que., along with Guillaume Bastille of Riviere-du-Loup, Que., Michael Gilday of Yellowknife, Olivier Jean of Lachenaie, Que., and Liam McFarlane of Medicine Hat, Alta. The womens side was shaken at the end of last season when its French coach Sebastien Cros left without warning after five years on the job to become coach of the Russian team. Yves Hamelin called it "shocking," but he is confident the women wont skip a beat with new coach Frederic Blackburn, a double silver medallist at the 1992 Olympics in Albertville, France. He had been assistant coach of the mens development team. "My primary objective was to find someone who would make the least transition possible, someone with the same philosophy," said Hamelin. "Frederic shared the philosophy of Sebastien, so the athletes arent in too much of a different environment." The test will come at the next four World Cups. Hamelin said that as well as gaining international experience, the team will get a look at new faces among their top opponents, led by the South Koreans who have made extensive changes since last season. South Korea is the all-time leader in Olympic short-track medals with 37, followed by Canada with 25, China with 24 and the United States with 18. The women will once again have to face Chinese star Wang Meng, who is back after a two-year hiatus. The Russians are also expected to be a factor in their build-up to 2014. After the fall season, new selections will be held for the final World Cups in February in Dresden, Germany and in Sochi, where skaters will see the Olympic venue for the first time. Maltais wants to be there. "Its exciting to see the city how the venue is," she said. "It will make us feel more that we want to be at the Olympics because you can put an image on your dream." For Maltais, that image includes a medal around her neck. "Thats the goal," she said. "You dont go to the Olympics just to be there. "I already did that in Vancouver. I already went to the Olympic just for the experience. Now that part of my life is done and Im going for the podium." ' ' '