Monday 19 September 2016 13:36, UK
In his latest column, Guillem Balague discusses Barcelona's new formation, James Rodriguez's return to form for Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid's attacking approach.
Barca, Real and Atletico all recorded impressive wins over the weekend, while bottom-of-the-table Valencia slumped to their fourth consecutive defeat at Athletic Bilbao.
But what did we learn from the latest round of fixtures? Sky Sports' Spanish football expert Balague dissects the key performances before answering YOUR questions...
Barcelona played 3-4-3 against Leganes, a set-up used by Luis Enrique a couple of times before, but the way he used it on this occasion was proof formations are just numbers.
For instance, the 3-4-3 that Pep Guardiola used about 18 times during his first season, and the one Johan Cruyff preferred, was designed to create superiority in midfield.
What Enrique did on Saturday was completely the opposite. It was more about breaking the team into two so he had two midfielders and three defenders, leaving the rest free to attack. It was a way of getting the ball to the front three as quickly as possible because he felt Leganes were going to press high.
If Barcelona could beat the press, their front three would find themselves up against just three defenders and, while it took some time for Barcelona to get it right, eventually they did.
Luis Suarez was on the bench for the last 35 minutes and with only five games played, that is extraordinary because last season he played every single minute when involved.
There will be rotations and we already saw Lionel Messi and Suarez starting on the bench against Alaves. The front three won't play every single minute this time.
Zinedine Zidane did the same as Enrique in terms of rotation. Gareth Bale missed out with a knock against Espanyol and Cristiano Ronaldo, who in the past would have travelled, was left at home with a temperature. Both could have easily played and should be OK to face Villarreal in midweek.
Despite that, they still managed to get their 16th consecutive league win, stretching across two seasons, which means they have equalled Guardiola's Barca record.
Real Madrid's football was not impressive but it was effective and considering the absence of their two stars, they still managed to create enough chances to beat Espanyol.
James started and scored, and Zidane is slowly bringing him back into the equation. Little by little, he is starting to feel more important to the team and that is what James needs.
He scored from outside the box, which is his 11th goal from outside the penalty area, and only Messi has scored more since the Colombian's arrival at Real Madrid.
Atletico Madrid played with their new central midfield in their win over Sporting Gijon.
Koke now partners Saul Niguez in the middle, with Nicolas Gaitan and Yannick Ferreira Carrasco on the wings, with two forwards in Antoine Griezmann and Kevin Gameiro.
Atletico fans are used to winning but now they want a little more, and Diego Simeone is offering them that with a really attacking line-up.
Simeone agreed his side had to be more adventurous in certain games considering the quality they possess and the team seemed to embrace the challenge and had a very good offensive game, scoring five goals.
Obviously they won't do this every match, with Barcelona in midweek an example of when they may be more conservative.
It was an important game for Simeone too because it followed the news we told you on Friday, that he had reduced his contract by two years. The fans still treated him like a god and there were no complaints from anybody.
It was a disappointing game for Valencia, who went in front against Athletic Bilbao, but once they conceded they couldn't raise their game.
It's a bit deceiving to say they have been very poor based on zero points from four games because before the Bilbao game they had created enough chances to win matches but had been unlucky.
However, on this occasion it seemed they didn't raise their game enough and it means Pako Ayestaran's time is running out.
Valencia have Alaves and Leganes before the international break and the club is already looking for a new coach.
For me, it's sad to see Valencia keep making the same mistakes over and over again. It's stupid to think it's all the coach's fault, but it's difficult to defend your position when the team has lost its opening four games in the league.
Villarreal were outplayed by Real Sociedad but Nicola Sansone, who has an interesting story, scored a fantastic goal from 52 metres.
He came from Sassuolo, where he had been one of the bright lights over the past two-and-a-half years for one of the most surprising teams in Italy.
He's German-born and started in the Bayern Munich youth sides as a left winger.
He has never been a great goalscorer but the absences of Roberto Soldado and Cedric Bakambu have meant he has played as a forward and he did really well this weekend, creating a lot of chances, including the penalty, and scoring two goals.
He got seven goals last season, so he's started this campaign in fine form and it could be his best yet.
Umtiti? Varane? Gimenez? Who is the most promising centre-back in La Liga? Luke
Samuel Umtiti sometimes rushes his decisions a little and can be too confident in possession. Raphael Varane is very solid and doesn't make mistakes. Jose Gimenez also rushes decisions occasionally.
For me, Varane has what it takes to become a super centre-back but his problem is his knees. A year ago he couldn't play two games in a week.
What's the story behind Messi and Neymar's bleached blonde hairstyle? Kelvin
Neymar keeps changing his hairstyle. Messi has admitted he needed a change after the Copa America. It was time to start from scratch and that's what he did.
How good a manager is Zizou? Jameo
Zizou is a very good manager for Real Madrid. He's not one to work on details and tactics. He works on the ego and confidence of his players and uses that to his advantage.
He has decided to rotate and because he has been so good to everybody, he is able to leave Bale and Ronaldo at home, when at other times they would have at least travelled.
Do you think Atletico have a chance to win the league this year? Ranjit
Of course. Especially now Atleti have taken a step forwards and decided to be more offensive in certain games. It is a shame Simeone didn't start doing that before the Alaves and Leganes games because they have enough quality to attack teams.
Who do you think will win the Pichichi this season? Nito
Luis Suarez has every chance. Ronaldo and Suarez will both rest at times, but I get the impression the way Barca's front three works will give Suarez the edge.
