ROME: David Beckham began his second loan spell with AC Milan in style as the rossoneri came from behind to beat Genoa 5-2 on Wednesday and leapfrog Juventus into second place in Serie A.

Beckham, who scored in the same fixture last season after being loaned out from LA Galaxy, looked hungry for action as he earned a starting place with fellow midfield veteran Clarence Seedorf out through injury. The three points took AC Milan onto 34 points from 17 games — eight behind reigning champions Inter, who returned from their winter break with a 1-0 win over Chievo to maintain their eight-point lead — though Beckham and company have a game in hand.

Jose Mourinho’s Inter took the points courtesy of a 12th minute goal on the counter attack from striker Mario Balotelli.

It was not all good news for Inter, as their Romanian international defender Cristian Chivu fractured his skull in a clash of heads in the 46th minute while Balotelli was subjected to racist abuse. Balotelli, born in Palermo but of Ghanaian heritage, is regularly subjected to such insults but this time spoke out.

Juventus are third, a point behind AC Milan having played a game more, after winning 2-1 at Parma. Juventus suffered an injury worry as French striker David Trezeguet went off with an apparent sprained ankle after being tackled by Parma’s veteran defender Christian Panucci in the 18th minute. With Inter streaking clear the onus was on Milan — and the returning Beckham — to show their steel and, after a false start, they did just that, once they had recovered from Giuseppe Sculli’s shock opener, a stooping header after 25 minutes.

Ten minutes earlier, Milan should have been ahead after Giuseppe Biava fouled Massimo Ambrosini but Ronaldinho placed his kick too close to Marco Amelia. But the keeper then fouled Ambrosini for another spotkick. This time Ronaldinho drilled the ball low inside the opposite corner as Amelia guessed wrong in going the same way as for the first kick.

And the pressure told as Thiago Silva fired them ahead in the 37th minute after Amelia was only able to parry Ambrosini’s initial vicious effort. Two minutes after the restart it was 3-1, Ronaldinho sending through a cute pass to Luca Antonini, and he teed up Marco Borriello to clip home.

Borriello then added icing to the cake with a spectacular overhead kick. Klaas-Jan Huntelaar thrashed home the fifth from yet another penalty after Marco Rossi had brought down the marauding Ronaldinho. David Suazo fired in a late consolation for Genoa but that could not take the gloss off an emphatic Milanese win.

Napoli lie fourth on 30 points after a 2-0 victory over Atalanta while Roma will be kicking themselves after letting a 2-0 lead slip away at Cagliari with the home side scoring twice in time added on to force a 2-2 draw.

Copa del Rey

Madrid: Second-division Recreativo Huelva beat 10-man Atletico Madrid 3-0 in the Copa del Rey fifth round while third-division Alcorcon kept their cup run alive, despite losing 3-2 to Racing Santander. Deportivo La Coruna beat Valencia 2-1 and second-tier Celta Vigo held Villarreal to 1-1.

Atletico went two goals and one man down within 25 minutes. Recreativo’s Bruno Fornaroli scored with a cool finish and Jeronimo Barrales from the penalty spot after Cedric Mabwati brought down Aitor Tornavaca in the area. Tomas Ujfalusi was ejected for a challenge on Fornaroli. Daniel Candeias appeared to secure Recreativo’s quarter-final spot when he scored from Emilio Sanchez’s assist in the 88th.

Recreativo made the numerical advantage count and Atletico was lackluster throughout. The home side nearly scored again early in the second half when Barrales controlled the ball in the area before being dispossessed by Alvaro Dominguez.

Santander went ahead through Christian Fernandez’s header in the 33rd. Alexandre Geijo put the first-division team 2-0 up just after halftime. Alcorcon’s Inigo Lopez cut the deficit in the 58th, kneeing the ball in from a corner. Santander took control of the tie again when Jose Moraton scored following a free kick, before the unmarked Borja Gomez headed in Alcorcon’s second in the 88th minute. Despite Santander’s superior finishing, Alcorcon played the kind of high-tempo game with which they eliminated Real Madrid from the competition in November with a 5-1 aggregate.

In Valencia, La Coruna’s Jose Guardado scored in the first minute of the second half and Pablo Alvarez appeared to have put the tie all but out of reach in the 56th with a solo run from the right wing which he capped by cutting inside and scoring.

However, 2008 champions Valencia cut the deficit when substitute David Silva scored in the 74th, his weak shot wrongfooting the goalkeeper with a deflection.