MADRID, March 19 (NsNewsWire) — Real Madrid go into the international break as league leaders in Spain after a narrow 2-1 win away to Athletic Club Bilbao on Saturday.

Madrid can thank a solid defensive display and goals from Karim Benzema and Casemiro for the victory against a rival, who could count themselves slightly unlucky not to have taken a point since they saw more of the ball, reports Xinhua.

The key to the game was the home side’s failure to consolidate following Aritz Aduriz’s 65th minute equalizer and allowing Casemiro a simple finish following a corner 3 minutes later for the deciding goal.

The day kicked off with Eibar and Espanyol drawing a forgettable encounter 1-1. Eibar opened the scoring through Kiko Garcia after 20 minutes, but Jose Jurado equalized an error strewn game five minutes after halftime.

Deyverson’s 44th minute goal gave Alaves a 1-0 win in the Basque derby at home to Real Sociedad. Alaves would have won by more goals but for a stunning performance from Real Sociedad keeper, Geronimo Rulli who produced a series of saves to keep the home side at bay.

Finally Betis moved a step closer to assuring their top flight survival by giving another blow to Osasuna with first half goals from Rafa Navarro and Ruben Castro in a straightforward 2-0 win in Seville.