Real Madrid kept the Spanish league race wide open Sunday by beating Valencia 2-0 after goals from Gonzalo Higuain and Cristiano Ronaldo. Madrid went ahead in the 25th minute after Jose Maria “Guti” Gutierrez stole the ball and passed to Higuain in the area and the striker placed the ball past goalkeeper Cesar Sanchez. In the 78th, Marcelo dribbled down the left and sent a low cross into the area that Ronaldo struck first time for his 20th goal of the season. The win means Madrid has 83 points, one less than leader Barcelona, which was held 0-0 at Espanyol Saturday. Valencia is third with 59 points. Also Sunday, Juan Francisco “Nino” Martinez scored a hat trick as Tenerife beat Getafe 3-2 to boost its bid for survival. Martinez leveled the game in the 30th minute after Pedro Leon's early goal for Getafe. He scored again in the 69th but Francisco Casquero equalized six minutes later. Martinez hit the winner and his 13th goal of the season in the 76th. At the other end of the standings, it was a tense day of action for teams involved in the battle to avoid relegation. Mohamed Tchite scored twice for Racing Santander to draw 2-2 at Xerez and Malaga drew 0-0 with Valladolid. Athletic Bilbao drew 0-0 with Zaragoza. Away from the relegation battle Sunday, Deportivo La Coruna drew 0-0 with Almeria. At the bottom of the standings, Zaragoza is 16th on 34 points, Malaga is 17th on 33 points, Tenerife is 18th on 32 points, Valladolid is 19th on 29 points and Xerez is bottom on 27. Roma reclaims lead In Rome, Mirko Vucinic scored two second-half goals as AS Roma rallied to beat Lazio 2-1 in a fractious derby Sunday to reclaim the Serie A lead after Inter Milan won Friday. Tommaso Rocchi put Lazio ahead in the 14th minute at the Stadio Olimpico but Sergio Floccari saw his penalty saved by Roma goalkeeper Julio Sergio to prevent the host going 2-0 ahead in the 47th. Vucinic equalized from the spot eight minutes into the second half before the Montenegro forward smashed a free kick through a hole in Lazio's wall 10 minutes later for the winner. With four rounds remaining, Roma leads with 71 points, one ahead of Inter, which beat 10-man Juventus 2-0. AC Milan is seven points off the lead after being beaten 2-1 by Sampdoria. Roma, which trailed Inter by 14 points in October, extended its unbeaten run to 24 games, with 18 wins and six draws. The Giallorossi have won their last six matches. Also Sunday, it was: Atalanta 2, Fiorentina 1; Bari 1, Napoli 2; Cagliari 2, Palermo 2; Catania 2, Siena 2; Parma 2, Genoa 3 and Udinese 1, Bologna 1. Sampdoria's victory moved the Genoa-based team into fourth place, which is the final Champions League berth.
