An opportunist hat trick from captain Raul helped Real Madrid to a 4-2 comeback win at Sevilla on Sunday which cut Barcelona's lead at the top of the Primera Liga standings to four points. Barca was held to a 2-2 draw at fourth-placed Valencia on Saturday and Real took advantage to move to 78 points with five games to play as it bids for a third straight title. Third-placed Sevilla went ahead in the 17th minute when midfielder Renato nipped in front of his marker to head Diego Perotti's cross past Iker Casillas from close range. The goal galvanized Real and Gonzalo Higuain had two good chances to equalise before Raul turned in a low cross from Christoph Metzelder just before halftime. The 31-year-old striker hooked in a deflected center on 63 minutes and then pounced on a fumble by Sevilla goalkeeper Andres Palop to make it 3-1 soon afterward. Substitute Diego Capel pulled one back with just under 10 minutes left before Marcelo raced clear to score Real's fourth and seal its 16th win in 17 matches since a 2-0 defeat at Barca's Nou Camp in December. Fifth-placed Villarreal won 2-1 at Getafe to keep alive its chances of returning to next season's Champions League and Atletico Madrid beat relegation-threatened Sporting Gijon 3-1 to climb above Malaga into sixth. King's Cup finalists Athletic Bilbao won a stormy encounter against north-coast rivals Racing Santander 2-1. Five players were sent off during the second half, three from Racing and two from Athletic. At the foot of the table, Espanyol pulled clear of the relegation places with a 2-0 home win over Real Betis. Recreativo Huelva is 19th with 30 points, after a 4-2 home defeat by Real Mallorca, two above bottom club Numancia.