Bale's brace keeps Real in hunt for La Liga crown

Gareth Bale scored twice as Real Madrid recovered from two consecutive league defeats to beat Rayo Vallecano 5-0 on Saturday.

Atletico Madrid remains top of La Liga as it came from behind away to beat Athletic Bilbao 2-1, while Barcelona rounded off a fine week by overcoming stiff resistance from local rival Espanyol to win 1-0 thanks to a late Lionel Messi penalty.

Victory for all three title contenders means Atletico maintains its one-point lead over Barcelona with Real a further two points back in third.