Deportivo beats Oviedo
Deportivo beats Oviedo to step closer to title
jp/10/Soccer
Deportivo beats Oviedo to step closer to title
MADRID (Reuter): Brazilian striker Bebeto scored twice to spur Deportivo Coruna to a blistering 5-2 away win over mid-table Real Oviedo on Sunday and edge closer to their first Spanish league title.
Deportivo reclaimed their two-point lead over champions Barcelona, while Real Madrid, who returned to nightmare territory with a humiliating 3-2 defeat by Celta on Saturday, are five points adrift in third place.
Barcelona had briefly drawn level with Deportivo after a hard- earned 2-1 away win over Lerida on Saturday.
Deportivo weren't the only big scorers on Sunday. Twenty-year- old Julen Guerrero became the first Spanish player to score four goals in a match this season as Athletic Bilbao obliterated Sporting Gijon 7-0.
The crushing victory was the first time in 35 years that Athletic had scored seven goals in a match and it moved them closer to a UEFA Cup place next season.
Deportivo, who have seen their lead whittled down by Barcelona in recent weeks, started nervously, going behind to a 14th-minute goal from Carlos Munoz.
But the Galicians equalized in the 27th minute through Nando Martinez, and a minute before half-time Bebeto broke past a defender and outfoxed the goalkeeper to put Deportivo ahead.
Nando grabbed his second goal three minutes after half-time before Croatian striker Janko Jankovic edged Oviedo back into the game with a goal in the 55th minute.
Two minutes later, Oviedo's defender Antonio Rivas was dismissed for his second yellow card.
Bebeto, who also scored twice in last weekend's 4-1 thrashing of Athletic Bilbao which broke a lean spell of listless draws for the leaders, added his second as Deportivo sealed victory with two goals in eight minutes.
Bebeto struck in the 75th minute and Claudio Barrangan in the 83rd.
Victory came at a price though, as Deportivo will be without Jose Ribera and Salvador Voro for their midweek clash with Atletico Madrid after they both picked up their fifth yellow cards and an automatic suspension.
Monaco
Meanwhile in the French First Division, Marseille was 1-0 up after half an hour, with Alain Boghossian nodding on for German international striker Rudi Voller to drive home.
But the lead lasted only a minute - a foul by Marseille hardman Basile Boli gave Sochaux a free-kick taken by Alain Caveglia, whose floated cross was headed in by Bertrand Piton.
Monaco celebrated its place in the European Champions Cup semi-finals with a 3-1 victory at Martigues.
All three of Monaco's big names - Enzo Scifo, Youri Djorkaeff, and Jurgen Klinsmann - got on the scoresheet.
Results
Athletic Bilbao 7, Sporting Gijon 0 Celta 3, Real Madrid 2 Logrones 2, Real Sociedad 0 Rayo Vallecano 0, Albacete 0 Lerida 1, Barcelona 2 Racing Santander 3, Osasuna 1 Atletico Madrid 2, Real Valladolid 0 Real Oviedo 2, Deportivo Coruna 5 Valencia 1, Sevilla 1 Tenerife 5, Real Zaragoza 3
Standings (read under played, won, drawn, lost, goals for, goals against, points):
Deportivo 31 18 9 4 47 17 45 Barcelona 31 19 5 7 73 39 43 Real Madrid 31 17 6 8 52 38 40 Zaragoza 31 15 6 10 56 39 36 Bilbao 31 14 8 9 51 34 36 Sevilla 31 12 10 9 46 34 34 Albacete 31 10 13 8 45 40 33 Tenerife 31 14 5 12 45 45 33 Santander 31 12 7 12 35 34 31 Valencia 31 11 9 11 39 43 31 Gijon 31 13 4 14 38 44 30 Sociedad 31 11 8 12 34 42 30 Vallecano 31 9 10 12 38 51 28 Real Oviedo 31 9 10 12 31 45 28 Atletico 31 9 9 13 44 45 27 Logrones 31 7 12 12 39 48 26 Celta 31 8 10 13 28 37 26 Valladolid 31 5 13 13 22 41 23 Lerida 31 6 10 15 24 42 22 Osasuna 31 5 8 18 22 51 18