BARCELONA — Barcelona forwards Lionel Messi, Philippe Coutinho and Luis Suarez combined to devastating effect to hammer Girona 6-1 Saturday as they went 10 points clear at the top of La Liga and set a club record of 32 games unbeaten in the league.

Visiting striker Portu gave Girona a surprise lead in the third minute of its first league game at the Nou Camp.

However, Suarez quickly leveled down the other end, while two goals from Messi and another from the Uruguayan saw Barca march into a 4-1 lead at halftime.

Barca’s record signing Coutinho had set up Suarez’s second goal and then struck for the first time in La Liga with a spectacular long-distance shot from well outside of the area in the 66th minute. Suarez completed a hat trick in the 76th, tapping in a cut-back from Ousmane Dembele.

Earlier Saturday, Real Madrid’s ‘BBC’ strikeforce hit back with a vengeance when Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema all scored in a 4-0 win at home to Alaves, a fifth successive win in all competitions for Zinedine Zidane’s side.

Barca leads the standings on 65 points, 10 clear of Atletico Madrid which visits Sevilla Sunday and 14 ahead of champion Real.

Ernesto Valverde’s side also surpassed the club’s longest run without a defeat in the league, which had stood since April 2011 when Pep Guardiola was in charge of the Catalans.

Inter goes third in Italy

Second-half goals from central defenders Milan Skriniar and Andrea Ranocchia gave Inter Milan a 2-0 home win over bottom team Benevento Saturday and boosted their hopes of qualifying for next season’s Champions League group stage.

In the day’s early fixture Bologna beat Genoa 2-0 at home thanks to goals from Mattia Destro and Cesar Falletti.

Three times European champions Inter, which last won the continent’s elite club competition in 2010, provisionally moved two places up to third despite an unimpressive performance which drew occasional jeers from the home crowd at the San Siro.

Benevento looked the more adventurous side in the first half and their striker Massimo Coda forced a fine save from Inter keeper Samir Handanovic after Ivan Perisic headed wide of the far post at the other end.

Coda blazed another shot over the bar on the hour before Skriniar broke the deadlock in the 66th minute, powering a header past Christian Puggioni after the keeper got a hand to it but could not keep it out.

Ranocchia made it 2-0 three minutes later with a diving header which gave Puggioni no chance after right back Joao Cancelo swung in an inviting free kick from his flank.

The result, only Inter’s second league win in their last 11 games, eased the pressure off coach Luciano Spalletti ahead of next weekend’s city derby with AC Milan and the subsequent clash with current leaders Napoli on March 11.

Close range tap-ins from Destro and Falletti allowed Bologna to beat Genoa in their mid-table clash.

Deeney earns Watford victory

Everton’s away misery continued as Troy Deeney’s late goal earned Watford a 1-0 victory to ease the host away from relegation danger in the Premier League Saturday.

Deeney produced one of the few moments of quality in a drab affair, turning to fire an unstoppable shot past Jordan Pickford from Stefano Okaka’s pass with 11 minutes left on the clock.

Everton remains ninth with 34 points while Watford has 33 in 10th spot — six points above the bottom three.