Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice in a 3-0 win over Granada to help Real Madrid to their first victory of the new La Liga campaign, as Barcelona kept their perfect record with a 1-0 result.
Real were reeling from a draw and a loss in their first two games, and badly needed a win to get back on track, despite lifting their first trophy of the season after their success over Barcelona in the Spanish Supercopa.
Ronaldo opened the scoring in the 26th minute, when his left-footed striker took a small deflection and squeezed between the legs of Granada goalkeeper Tono. Real had to wait until the 54th minute for their second goal, Ronaldo slotting home the rebound, after Tono had saved his intial shot.
The Portuguese striker then limped off the field, after a challenge from Borja Gomez, which saw the Granada player sent off for a second bookable offense. Gonzalo Higuain then made the match safe in the 76th minute, after being set up by strike partner Karim Benzema.
Despite the win, Jose Mourinho was not happy with his team's performance. "Today the team had little ambition, little rhythm, little intensity and I did not like it," Mourinho told reporters.
"It's not enough just to get the points, the team has to play more and work more."
Barcelona restored their five-point advantage over Real, thanks to a screamer from Adriano in the 23rd minute against Valencia. Cesc Fabregas, who has failed to find form this season, missed two easy chances, with Lionel Messi also having a rare off-day.
Andres Iniesta, who was recently named the UEFA Best Player in Europe, beating out the likes of teammate Messi and Ronaldo, said getting three points was more important than the performance. "It was important to win this game as well before the international break," Iniesta told Spanish television.
"We probably should have scored more goals given the chances we had but we're happy with the win and this is the path we have to follow."
In other matches, Athletic Bilbao ended their miserable start to the season, with goals from Aritz Aduriz and Markel Susaeta giving the Europa League runners-up a 2-0 win over Real Valladolid.
Rayo Vallecano drew 0-0 at home to Sevilla while Levante snatched a dramatic stoppage-time winner to post a 3-2 win over Espanyol.
