Barcelona edged an entertaining encounter with Malaga in La Liga to take another three points, winning by two goals to one.

Malaga proved to be tough opponents and were resilient throughout the game. Finally their armor was chinked in the 68th minute. Pedro Rodriguez, this year's young star, picked up the ball from 35 yards out. He dribbled a few yards and unleashed a stunning long strike which ended up in the back of the net.

Valdo equalised for Malaga after they sprang the Barcelona offside trap in the 81st minute. He made no mistake against the advances of Victor Valdes and looked to have fired Malaga to a point.

Lionel Messi had other ideas. In the 84th minute, he put Barcelona ahead. Xavi played an exquisite through ball to Dani Alves. Alves was clearly onside, despite the reactions by the Malaga defense. Unselfishly, he tapped the ball across to Messi who had an easy tap in. That is now 17 league goals for Messi this season who is joint top scorer with David Villa.