Madrid, May 27:

Real Madrid beat Deportivo La Coruna 3-1 on Saturday to retain the lead of the Spanish league with two rounds remaining.

Madrid lead with 72 points, FC Barcelona are second on head-to-head results, Sevilla are third with 67 and Valencia fourth at 65.

Barcelona won 1-0 against Getafe and Villarreal won 3-2 against Valencia. A well-timed pass by forward Lionel Messi wrong-footed Getafe’s defense and allowed Ronaldinho to tap in the goal in the third minute from a Samuel Eto’o cross.

Defender Sergio Ramos put Madrid ahead in the 29th minute when he was first to a loose ball in the area, although Deportivo players were protesting because Ruud van Nistelrooy appeared to have handled the ball just before.

Deportivo shot four times at Iker Casillas’ goal in the 55th, culminating with Joan Capdevila’s left-footed equaliser from a cross by Julian de Guzman.

Madrid captain Raul Gonzalez scored with a header in the 58th from a cross by Beckham. Raul, who was playing in his 605th game for Madrid matching Francisco Gento’s tally of matches with the Spanish powerhouse, received an ovation from the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. Nistelrooy deftly controlled a poor clearance by defender Fabricio Coloccini and hit the back of the net in the 75th.

German Cup

BERLIN: FC Nuremberg captured their fourth German Cup on Saturday with a 3-2 extra-period win against VfB Stuttgart that also spoiled the Bundesliga champion’s chance at a double.

Jan Kristiansen’s 109th-minute rising shot from well outside the area flew just under the crossbar for the winner against Stuttgart. An 80th-minute penalty conversion from Stuttgart’s Pavel Pardo sent the match into overtime.

Marco Englehardt’s 47th-minute header for Nuremberg had put his team up 2-1. Cacau scored in the 20th and seven minutes later Marek Mintal tied it at 1 for Nuremberg. The club also won the trophy in 1932 and 1935.