Resilient Deportivo up to fifth in Spain

A fine strike from Jose Guardado helped Deportivo la Coruna come from behind to beat Tenerife 3-1 and boost their European ambitions Saturday.

Deportivo had plenty of early possession but poor defending saw Juanlu Hens give Tenerife the lead.

Juan Rodriguez headed Deportivo level and while they continued to press forward it was Tenerife who came close to scoring again when Juan Nino saw a close-range shot saved well by keeper Daniel Aranzubia shortly before half time.

A powerful left-footed drive from Guardado found the corner of the net after 55 minutes and after getting their noses in front Deportivo never looked back with Diego Colotto adding to their lead as they moved into fifth place.

Barcelona and Real Madrid, with just two points separating them at the top of the table, were both in action later Saturday with the Catalan club at lowly Almeria and Real welcoming fourth-placed Sevilla to the Bernabeu.

Barca have not been at their best in recent outings and are desperately holding onto their lead ahead of an April meeting of the top two at the Bernabeu liable to decide the championship.

There was an improvement in the 2-1 win over Malaga and Andres Iniesta realises that Barca must continue in the same vein against Almeria.

“The match against Real will be important but there are a lot of points in play before and afterwards. Following several poor matches we gave a better showing against Malaga and caused more danger,” said the midfield star.

“It is normal that during a whole season you are not always at your best but as a squad it is the job of us all to play a part and if someone doesn’t play well then another can come in.”

While Barcelona have started to stutter, Real have really hit form domestically, scoring eleven goals in their last two games. They are proving to be more than just the one-man show critics claimed earlier in the season and Cristiano Ronaldo has been complemented well by Gonzalo Higuain and Kaka in attack.

They have failed to show their best football against stronger sides such as Barcelona and Lyon but coach Manuel Pellegrini is not concerned as his side prepare to face Sevilla.

“We need to win this game but not to demonstrate that we can play well against good teams. We have already beaten Atletico Madrid in their stadium which is something that Barcelona, Valencia and Sevilla have all failed to do,” he said.

Valencia were well-beaten by Atletico Madrid 4-1 but they still have a three-point cushion above third place ahead of Sunday’s match with Racing Santander as Sevilla only managed a draw with Athletic Bilbao.

Mallorca’s remarkable season continues and they will be looking to maintain their strong home form, which has seen them lose just once all season, against Sporting Gijon.

The battle for a European place is fierce and Villarreal, under new coach Juan Carlos Garrido, got back into the frame with victory over Deportivo la Coruna last weekend.

“Garrido has tried to give the team more balance and he knows a lot about defending and how to maintain the possession. It was not normal for us to concede so many goals before. I hope we can get into the Europa League and I know the players will battle until the end,” said defender Gonzalo Rodriguez.

Villarreal play Espanyol with ground to make up on the European places, while Athletic Bilbao, in seventh spot, entertain Valladolid.

Xerez’s hopes of survival have appeared forlorn for some time and as they prepare for the game against Malaga they are 12 points from safety.

“In the Primera Liga you pay for all the mistakes you make and from now on we will just have to try our best and see what happens,” said defender Jesus Mendoza.

Zaragoza, also in trouble on the edge of the relegation zone, have been boosted by the news that their in-form striker Humberto Suazo is fit for the tricky clash with Atletico Madrid.

Just one point from their last three games has left Osasuna once again looking over their shoulder at the relegation zone and they will be hoping to get back on track against Getafe.