Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola admitted his side’s sinking hopes of hanging onto their La Liga crown were at the mercy of bitter rivals Real Madrid following Saturday’s shock 3-2 defeat at Osasuna.

The loss left Real with the chance to open up a 10-point gap at the top if Jose Mourinho’s side beat Levante on Sunday.

“Win the title? Well, we will try to defend our Champions League crown and then attempt to negotiate each match in La Liga,” said Guardiola on a freezing night in Pamplona.

“We will see what happens. But we are a significant distance behind which I guess will increase on Sunday. The league will be more difficult for us now.

“It was hard for us to get into this game but we have to congratulate Osasuna.”

The reigning La Liga and Champions League winners have struggled on their travels this season with just four wins and succumbed to their second defeat on Saturday.

A double from Dejan Lekic put Osasuna in a commanding position before the break and, while Alexis Sanchez reduced the arrears after 50 minutes, a clinical finish from Raul Garcia restored the two-goal cushion.

Substitute Cristian Tello hit Barca’s second and there were chances at either end in the final stages but Osasuna held on.

While Barca struggle, Real continue to roll over their opposition, having won 18 of 21 games, scoring 71 goals in the process, eight more than the champions.

Guardiola continued to put his faith in youth against Osasuna and left Xavi Hernandez, Andres Iniesta and Cesc Fabregas on the bench with possibly their midweek Champions League match with Bayer Leverkusen in mind.

Sergio Busquets was also absent through injury, and the Catalan side lacked their normal fluidity on a bumpy pitch.

Despite Barcelona’s problems, Real Madrid coach Mourinho feels the title contest will not be decided imminently.

“February is possibly more difficult for us than Barcelona as we take on Levante, Racing (Santander) who are improving, Rayo (Vallecano), without doubt the surprise package this season, and then Espanyol, who are fighting for a place in Europe,” he said.

“Levante are a good side and not just for the fact they have beaten Barcelona but also for where they are in the table. In October and November, everyone thought they would run out of steam.”

Earlier, a series of spurned chances cost Atletico Madrid with a 0-0 draw at struggling Racing Santander but the revival under Diego Simeone continued as they push for a place in Europe.

Atletico are in sixth place while they are unbeaten in six games and yet to concede a goal under the new Argentine coach although this was their second consecutive goalless stalemate.

They are a point above Athletic Bilbao who lost 2-1 away to Real Betis after conceding an injury-time strike from Nelson.