Depor savour derby glory

Víctor Sánchez scored a hat-trick as RC Deportivo La Coruña defeated fellow UEFA Champions League challengers RC Celta de Vigo 5-0 in the Galician derby on a weekend where the leaders Real Madrid CF and Valencia CF both won. Elsewhere, five Premiership clubs were eliminated from the FA Cup in England, while Fabien Barthez made a heroic return in Olympique de Marseille colours.

Bottom three
Celta coach Miguel Ángel Lotina apologised to supporters following his side's derby loss to third-placed Deportivo on Saturday. After Alberto Luque's opener, Víctor scored three times and Diego Tristán completed the rout to leave Celta in the bottom three. "All I can do is ask forgiveness from the supporters," said Lotina. "We didn't play at the level required in this division."

Raúl winner
A solitary goal from Raúl González enabled Madrid to temporarily stretch their lead to five points on Saturday with victory against struggling Real Murcia CF. Second-half goals from Rubén Baraja (2), Pablo Aimar and Mista helped Valencia to maintain the pressure on the champions by coming from behind to defeat ten-man Villarreal CF 4-2 at the Mestalla on Sunday.

Real climb
Fourth-placed Club Atlético Osasuna drew 1-1 against Athletic Club Bilbao, while Club Atlético de Madrid, in fifth, played out a goalless draw with Real Zaragoza. Elsewhere, FC Barcelona slipped to 12th after a 3-0 defeat by Real Racing Club Santander, and last season's surprise package Real Sociedad de Fútbol climbed out of the bottom three with a 2-1 away victory against Málaga CF.

Spills and thrills
League action will return to England in midweek after a weekend of FA Cup action. The holders Arsenal FC came from behind to defeat Leeds United AFC 4-1 away, while Manchester United FC did likewise against Aston Villa FC, winning 2-1 thanks to two second-half Paul Scholes goals. Last season's runners-up Southampton FC were another top-flight casualty as they lost 3-0 at home to Newcastle United FC.

Charlton shocked
The shock of the round saw Charlton Athletic FC lose 3-2 at first division Gillingham FC, while Blackburn Rovers FC completed the quintet of ousted Premiership sides after their 4-0 defeat at Birmingham City FC. Liverpool FC avoided an embarrassing early exit when they won 2-0 at Yeovil Town FC and Fulham FC also overcame third division opposition in the form of Cheltenham Town FC. Chelsea FC were held to a 2-2 draw at Watford FC on Saturday.

'Lot of pressure'
In the French Cup, goalkeeper Barthez made a successful return for Marseille against RC Strasbourg, as he scored one and saved two penalties in his side's 4-3 shoot-out victory. "I had been waiting to return to club football for so many weeks that I felt a lot of pressure," said Barthez, whose loan from Manchester United was completed on Friday. EA Guingamp were Ligue 1's highest-profile casualties after going down 5-3 on penalties in Bayonne, and SC Bastia and AC Ajaccio were also eliminated.

Sporting close in
Elsewhere, Sporting Clube de Portugal's 3-1 derby win against SL Benfica moved them within two points of Portuguese league leaders FC Porto, who play their game in hand against Rio Ave FC today. Celtic FC are also enjoying local bragging rights after defeating Rangers FC 3-0 on Saturday to open up an eleven-point lead at the Scottish summit.