Real Madrid, Barcelona secure wins in La Liga, points gap remains at four

Real Madrid produced a dominant performance at the Bernabéu to beat Real Betis 5–1 in La Liga, inspired by a first top-flight hat-trick from 21-year-old Gonzalo García. 

The victory on Sunday kept Madrid in second place and cut the gap to leaders Barcelona to four points.

With Kylian Mbappé sidelined by a knee injury, García stepped into the spotlight and opened the scoring after 20 minutes, rising unmarked to head home at the far post. Madrid controlled much of the first half and went into the break with a deserved 1–0 lead.

The home side took firm control shortly after half-time when García doubled his tally, cushioning the ball on his chest before firing a volley into the corner. Six minutes later, Raúl Asencio added a third, heading in from a corner for his first senior goal.

Betis responded with a spell of pressure, striking the woodwork before pulling a goal back on 66 minutes. Cucho Hernández rounded Thibaut Courtois and finished calmly from a tight angle to briefly give the visitors hope.

Any momentum was halted when García completed his hat-trick, finishing with a clever backheel from close range after a low cross from Arda Güler. 

The goal settled the contest as Madrid’s supporters relaxed after a nervy spell.

Substitute Fran García added a fifth deep into stoppage time, converting Federico Valverde’s cross to cap an emphatic win. 

Betis remain sixth in the table, while Madrid now turn their attention to the Spanish Super Cup semi-final against Atlético Madrid on January 8.

Meanwhile, Barcelona tightened their grip on the La Liga title race on Saturday with a dramatic 2-0 derby win away to Espanyol, scoring twice late on to move seven points clear at the top of the table.

Hansi Flick’s side finally broke through in the 86th minute when substitute Dani Olmo curled a brilliant finish into the top corner after a clever pass from Fermín López. 

López then turned provider again deep into stoppage time, setting up Robert Lewandowski to seal the result with a composed close-range goal.

Barcelona’s late-game strength this season has seen them record goals in the final 15 minutes, the highest in the league. Espanyol, who have not beaten their city rivals in a league match since 2009, stay fifth.