BARCELONA: Luis Suarez became the first La Liga player to score four goals for the second game in a row as Barcelona, helped by three penalties in the second half, stayed top by hammering Sporting Gijon 6-0 on Saturday.

Elsewhere, Gareth Bale made up for the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo by scoring twice as Real Madrid came back from two goals down to win 3-2 at Rayo Vallecano while Atletico Madrid kept up their title hopes with a 1-0 home victory over Malaga.

Atletico coach Diego Simeone could be facing a three-game touchline ban after being sent off at halftime when a ball was thrown on to the pitch from the technical area.

Suarez moved ahead of Ronaldo as the league’s top scorer on 34 goals after netting four times, twice with penalties, in the space of 25 second-half minutes.

Sporting had defender Ognjen Vranjes sent off in the 85th minute after picking up a second booking for fouling Neymar who scored the subsequent spot kick The league leaders and Atletico have 82 points, with Barca top because of a superior head-to-head record. Real are third on 81 points with three games remaining.

Lionel Messi’s stooping header put Barca ahead on 12 minutes but Gijon, who are third from bottom, missed two chances to equalise before halftime.

Suarez eased Barca nerves by tapping home Andres Iniesta’s low cross in the 63rd minute before converting twice from the spot.

The prolific Uruguayan, who also scored four times and provided three assists in Wednesday’s 8-0 thrashing of Deportivo La Coruna, grabbed another goal in the 88th minute, drilling in a pass from Messi.

Ronaldo missed his first league game of the season due to a muscle strain and Real suffered another blow ahead of their Champions League semi-final against Manchester City in midweek when Karim Benzema was injured against Rayo.

Real were 2-0 down inside 14 minutes after Adrian Embarba scored from close range and Venezuelan striker Miku pounced on more poor defending from the visitors.

Bale started the revival, heading in a 35th-minute corner before Zinedine Zidane’s side drew level six minutes after the break through substitute Lucas Vazquez.

Welshman Bale netted again nine minutes from time, collecting a misplaced pass from a Rayo defender before powering the ball past goalkeeper Juan Carlos.

Rayo took a surprise early lead when Embarba converted former Manchester United player Bebe’s low cross from six metres, and a weak header from Raphael Varane allowed Miku to make it 2-0.

Bale’s header lifted Real and they drew level through substitute Vazquez who had replaced Benzema.

The Wales forward had the final say, intercepting the ball and racing into the box down the left to strike the winner.

DORTMUND KEEP PACE WITH LEADERS

BERLIN: Bayern Munich, chasing a record fourth Bundesliga title in a row, sank Hertha Berlin 2-0 on Saturday but had to put the champagne on ice as Borussia Dortmund beat VfB Stuttgart 3-0 to stay within striking distance.

A deflected effort by Arturo Vidal and a 79th-minute goal from Douglas Costa were enough to give treble-chasing Bayern victory in a lacklustre game against fourth-placed Hertha.

The Bavarians, who take on Atletico Madrid in the Champions League semi-finals in midweek, have 81 points with three games to go and can seal the title by defeating Borussia Moenchengladbach next week.

Guardiola is looking to end his spell in Munich with three trophies as Bayern are also through to the German Cup final where they will face Dortmund.

Dortmund struck twice in the first half through Shinji Kagawa and American teenager Christian Pulisic.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan then grabbed his 11th league goal of the campaign after the break to maintain his team’s slim title hopes on 74 points.

Bayer Leverkusen scored three times in seven second-half minutes to recover from a two-goal deficit and record a 3-2 victory at Schalke 04.

Leverkusen’s win tightened their hold on third spot, and automatic Champions League qualification, with 54 points, five ahead of Hertha.

Schalke, with coach Andre Breitenreiter under mounting pressure, missed a fifth-minute penalty through Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and are now sweating on a Europa League position, in seventh place on 45 points.

Champions League quarter-finalists VfL Wolfsburg continued their slump as a 2-0 home defeat by Augsburg dropped them to 10th on 39 points, all but ending their chances of European football next season.

Wolfsburg, last season’s German Cup winners and Bundesliga runners-up, have failed to win any of their last six matches.

Bottom club Hanover 96 were all but relegated despite rallying from two goals down to draw 2-2 at Ingolstadt.

Hanover have 22 points, nine off the relegation playoff spot occupied by Werder Bremen who have a better goal difference.

JOVETIC ON TARGET FOR INTER

MILAN: Striker Stevan Jovetic scored twice as Inter Milan came back from a goal down to beat Udinese 3-1 at San Siro and consolidate fourth place in Serie A on Saturday.

Striker Cyril Thereau volleyed the visitors into the lead in the ninth minute with Jovetic tapping in the equaliser in the 36th from Mauro Icardi’s cross.

Jovetic struck again 15 minutes from time chesting in a cross from Jonathan Biabiany before substitute Eder rounded off the win five minutes into added time.

Inter are four points behind third-placed AS Roma and 18 adrift of leaders Juventus.

Published in Dawn, April 25th, 2016