Real Madrid closed back to within five points of leaders Barcelona with a late 3-2 win at title rivals Valencia on Saturday, with Argentine Ezequiel Garay the unlikely hero with an 83rd-minute winner.
All five goals came in a sensational second half, with Argentine Gonzalo Higuain twice putting Real ahead only for David Villa and substitute Joaquin, only on the pitch five minutes, to peg Real back at 2-2 with 10 minutes left.
Substitute Garay, however, headed in a Xabi Alonso set-piece on 83 minutes with his first league goal for Real and it was vital.
PHOTO: EPA
It was a first home defeat for Valencia, who had gone 15 games unbeaten in all competitions and the club fall six points behind Real in third place.
Real were missing Cristiano Ronaldo through suspension, while Kaka was captain because Raul was again on the bench.
For Valencia, Villa led the line looking to shoot down the club that tried in vain to sign him in the summer.
Valencia had the ball in the net through Pablo Hernandez on four minutes, but the goal was ruled out for a marginal offside. It was a first half full of offsides, with Juan Mata having a Valencia goal disallowed for another offside, before Real suffered the same fate when Karim Benzema’s header was chalked off. Sergio Ramos thundered a header against the post from the resulting corner, but Valencia held on.
The goals were more forthcoming in the second half, with Higuain netting the opener on 54 minutes although Benzema deserved most of the credit with his run and cross putting the chance on a plate.
Villa equalized six minutes later with a header after Real’s central defense went missing, but Higuain responded with his second goal on 65 minutes, a clinical finish after a Marcelo pass. Joaquin came on a substitute and thought he had earned Valencia a point with his 80th-minute goal, but Garay had the last word with his dramatic header three minutes later.
The result was not was not what Barcelona wanted, but the champions did their job in their final league game of the year, notching a 1-0 win over Espanyol.
A questionable first half Zlatan Ibrahimovic penalty secured victory for Barca in their final league match of the year.
“I took the penalties at Inter and [Lionel] Messi takes them here, but I don’t mind taking the odd one,” Ibrahimovic said. “It was a tough game and there were a lot of nerves because our game didn’t go to plan tonight, but the 1-0 win is very important.”
Barca now head to the FIFA World Club Championship in Abu Dhabi, with their first match on Wednesday, looking to win a sixth trophy in a year.
Swede Ibrahimovic made it 11 league goals for the season with an unstoppable penalty on 39 minutes, although Espanyol will feel aggrieved at the spot-kick which was awarded for a shirt-tug on Xavi.
With usual penalty taker Lionel Messi out with an ankle injury, Ibrahimovic stepped up and was the paragon of coolness, smacking the spot-kick into the corner.
In the second half, Barca looked a shadow of themselves and only some last ditch interceptions helped keep Espanyol at bay as they notched another clean sheet to make it a perfect seven home wins at the Camp Nou.
It was a fourth straight defeat for falling Espanyol, who have also failed to score a goal in any of those four losses.
Earlier, Athletic Bilbao moved to within four points of the top four with a 2-1 win away at Real Zaragoza.
A towering header from 20-year-old defender Mikel San Jose, on loan from Liverpool, put Bilbao ahead on the hour, before Markel Susaeta scored what proved a vital second goal nine minutes from time.
The Basque club, who during last season were at times battling the drop, move up one position to seventh.
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