BARCELONA: Real Madrid recovered from the second-minute dismissal of goalkeeper Iker Casillas to secure a battling 1-0 win at Espanyol Sunday and cut Barcelona's lead at the top of La Liga to five points. Barca's record 16-match winning run ended on Saturday when it had to fight back from a goal down to rescue a 1-1 draw at Sporting Gijon and Real took full advantage with a gritty display at a raucous Cornella-El Prat stadium. Casillas, Spain's World Cup-winning captain, was shown a straight red after bringing down Jose Callejon just outside the area and Real coach Jose Mourinho immediately brought on reserve keeper Antonio Adan to replace Argentina winger Angel Di Maria. The dismissal lifted the home fans but they were silenced on 24 minutes when Real defender Marcelo cut in from the left wing and squeezed a shot past Carlos Kameni from a tight angle. January loan signing Emmanuel Adebayor almost snatched a second in the 40th minute but the Togo international's scooped shot bounced on top of the crossbar and out for a goal kick. Adebayor had chances to make the game safe late in the second half but Kameni pulled off two superb saves, while at the other end Joan Verdu nearly surprised Adan with a deft chip. In the earlier kickoff, Villarreal surrendered its grip on third place when it lost 1-0 at Deportivo Coruna. It left it in fourth, two points behind Valencia which won 2-1 at Atletico Madrid Saturday. Barca has 62 points from 23 matches, with Real on 57. Valencia is 10 points adrift on 47 and Villarreal has 45. Juve halts Inter run Juventus checked Inter Milan's pursuit of city rival and Serie A leader AC Milan with a 1-0 win Sunday from Alessandro Matri's first-half goal. Matri found the net in the 30th minute in a match in which both teams had several scoring chances. Inter striker Samuel Eto'o squandered a late chance to equalize when he smashed the ball against the bar despite having an open goal at his mercy. Inter is eight points behind Milan with a game in hand. Juventus is three further points behind. “It has been a tough few weeks for us and this win is important for our morale,” Juventus coach Luigi Delneri said. “We have had to be strong mentally in this period and tonight we were focused and precise in what we did, and as such deserved our win.” Lazio, meanwhile, stayed in contention for a Champions League place with a 2-0 win at Brescia Sunday. Alvaro Gonzalez scored an early goal in the 17th and Libor Kozak added another in the 58th to earn the Rome team a comfortable win that puts it seven points behind league leader AC Milan. Fiorentina twice came from behind to earn its first away win in over a year with a 4-2 victory at Palermo. Also Sunday, it was: Bari 0, Genoa 0; Cagliari 4, Chievo Verona 1; Catania 3, Lecce 2; Cesena 0, Udinese 3; and Sampdoria 3, Bologna 1.
