A brilliant second half performance from Real Madrid saw the defending champions thrash Villarreal 5-0 in their La Liga clash on Sunday.

Two goals from Wesley Sneijder and one each from Raul, Rudd van Nistelrooy and Guti completed the proceedings for Bernd Schuster's men in a one sided contest at the Estadio El Madrigal. The win sees Madrid move to the top of the table have already scripted an amazing come from behind performance against Atletico Madrid last week.

Madrid made their intentions known as early as in the 14th minute Robinho drove in a crisp shot from outside the area and struck the post. Raul had a great chance to open the scoring in the 21st minute when he latched on to a long ball inside the penalty area. Instead of trying a shot, the Madrid captain tried to drag the ball to van Nistelrooy but was denied by keeper Sebastian Viera.

The visitors finally took the lead in the 39th minute when Sneijder crossed in a great ball from the left and Raul bravely met the ball with his head in spite of a challenge from Viera and managed to head the ball above the keeper's head and into the goal.

Madrid went on the attack in the second half and were rewarded with a goal in the 48th minute when Sneijder scored his second in as many games with a curling free kick that struck the post before settling in the top corner. It was 3-0 two minutes later when Nistelrooy reached Sergio Ramos and waited for Viera to make his move before coolly passing the ball past the keeper from 5 yards out.

Villarreal had their share of chances in the half with Guillermo Franco, Fabricio Fuentes and Marcos Senna all coming close to scoring. However the match was out of their hands by the 72nd minute when Sneijder got his second goal of the game and Guti added the fifth 8 minutes later.

Real Zaragoza 1-1 Racing Santander

Real Zaragoza continued to have a disappointing start to this year's La Liga campaign as they were held to a 1-1 draw at the La Romareda by Racing Santander. The draw was no consolation for the home supporters who had seen their team lose 3-0 to Real Murcia in the first game of the Spanish La Liga season.

Coach Victor Fernandez had had a bad beginning to the new campaign. He would have been hoping to build on the sixth place finish last season, but that appears to be a tough task indeed. 

Zaragoza striker Ricardo Oliveira almost gave the home team a dream start at the beginning as he came close to scoring in the fourth minute of the match. However his fierce drive only hit the crossbar mush to the disappointment of the home fans.

Pedro Munitis, Aldo Duscher, Oscar Serrano and Pablo Pinillo all came close for Racing, but were unable to find the target from close range. Andres D'Alessandro came close for Zaragoza, but his lovely shot just went wide off the far post, while Diego Milito's shot drew a save from Racing goalkeeper Antonio Tono.

Zaragoza goalkeeper Cesar Sanchez was finally beaten in the 55th minutes when Serrano's left-footed shot found the back of the net. Racing were ahead and looked like he had sealed the game in the visitors favor. However the goal woke up Zaragoza, who mounted a series of attacks through Milito.

But it was Oliveira who drew level in the 75th minute as he collected a header blocked by Jorge Lopez to slot home his second goal of the season. Although Zaragoza mounted many attacks in the final minutes, they were unable to break the deadlock.

Zaragoza next face Athletic Club Bilbao, while Racing take on Levante.

Real Betis were involved in the second draw of their La Liga campaign this season as they came back from two goals behind to hold Espanyol to a 2-2 draw. Luis Garcia scored a brace for the visitors and looked to have sealed their first win of the campaign, but they let slip the advantage and allowed Betis to get back into the game.

Coach Ernesto Valverde will have been disappointed with Espanyol's performance, but will draw comfort from the fact that the team is scoring goals nevertheless. The game began well for the visitors as they took the lead in the 33rd minute when Pablo Zabaleta found Luis Garcia with a precise pass.

The Spaniard made no mistake as he shot past Ricardo in the Espanyol goal. Mariano Pavone almost hit back three minutes later, but Carlos Kameni was alert enough to preserve Espanyol's lead. Just three minutes before half-time, Luis Garcia was again in the thick of things as he beat Ricardo all ends up with a low shot.

After the break, Betis purposefully looked for an equalizer, with German winger David Odonkor looking very dangerous. Luis Garcia almost scored a hat-trick, but was thwarted by the inside post.

However that miss went on to become crucial in the context of the game as Rafael Sobis and substitute Fernando equalized for the away team. In the 83rd minute, Fernando headed in Branko Ilic's cross from the right wing, while Sobis collected Capi's pass from the left to drill home a neat shot.

Betis next face Deportivo La Coruna, while Espanyol take on Getafe.

A 10-man Getafe salvaged a draw in the second match of their La Liga campaign as Manu del Moral grabbed an equalizer in the last minute of their game against Recreativo Huelva.

Recreativo Huelva have begun their season in a nice way and have drawn both their games so far. The team has proved that last season was no flash in the pan. The game was dull and dreary for most part of the first 80 minutes. It only sprang to life when Recreativo striker Florent Sinama Pongolle blasted in his second goal of the season in the 85th minute. 

Recreativo coach Victor Munoz had decided to include Beto and Quique Alvarez for the match. He must have been pleased with the way his team began the game when Marcos Garcia unleashed a fierce left-footed effort only to see it sail over the crossbar.

Pablo Hernandez replied for Getafe almost immediately, but his fine effort was tipped over by Stefano Sorrentino, who was kept busy throughout the match. Sinama Pongolle stamped his class on the match early on and was unlucky to see his fine shot saved by Roberto Abbondanzieri in the 38th minute.

Getafe's Juan Albin could have put the home team ahead in the early part of the second half, but his shot found the post.

Silvestre Varela cut through a fine pass from the right in the 85th minute for Sinama Pongolle, who made no mistake. Just when it looked the game was beyond Getafe, Hernandez crossed for Manu to put away a neat header and level the match.

Getafe face Espanyol in their next game, while Recreativo take on Sevilla.

Barcelona bounced back from a disappointing draw last week to register a convincing 3-1 win over Athletic Bilbao on Sunday.

Ronaldinho scored twice, including one from the penalty spot, before Néstor Susaeta pulled one back for the visitors in the 71st minute. However Yaya Toure restored the two goal lead for Barca as both the teams finished the match with 10 men on the field.

Barca went on the attack from kick off and took the lead in the 8th minute through Ronaldinho. The Brazilian superstar was fouled on the edge of the penalty box and hit a brilliant curling shot that settled into the top corner past Gorka Iraizoz.

Ronaldinho could have had a second three minutes later through another free kick but saw his effort go just above the crossbar. Barca continued to press forward and Thierry Henry almost scored on his full debut when he very nearly converted from Deco's cross.

Barca doubled the lead in the 35th minute when Henry was fouled by Iraizoz in the penalty area and the referee had no hesitation in pointing to the spot. Ronaldinho stepped up once more and coolly converted the chance as Barca went into the half with a two goal lead.

Athletic had a great chance to get one back early in the second half when Ion Velez was sent clear but the striker managed to miss the chance with just Víctor Valdés to beat. Henry played a great one-two with Eric Abidal but saw his shot smash against the post.

The visitors got one back in the 71st minute when Susaeta latched on to a rebound from Iraola's free kick to slot the ball from close range. However Barca struck back immediately through Toure whose stinging drive struck the crossbar and bounced over the line. Referee Carlos Megia Davila awarded the goal to Barca even though Athletic players protested furiously.

Rafael Marquez received his marching order four minutes later when he was shown his second yellow card but parity was restored in the 80th minute when Lertxundi was shown a red for a bad tackle on Giovanni dos Santos. Messi and Toure both had chances to increase the lead for Barca while Aritz Aduriz could have scored for Athletic late in the game but Barca held on to the result to finish the game with all three points.

Newly promoted Almeria put up a determined fight against Valencia but were unable to avoid a 2-1 defeat in their La Liga clash on Sunday.

Fernando Morientes had opened the account for the visitors in the second half before Álvaro Negredo Sánchez on the hour mark. However Valencia took the lead through an unlikely source in form of Emiliano Moretti nine minutes from time and managed to hold on to the lead till the final whistle.

Fresh from the 3-0 thrashing of Deportivo LaCoruna on the opening day of the season, Almeria started off strongly and were better of the two teams in the first half. The hosts nearly took the lead in the 20th minute when Miguel Angel Corona went on a great run to position himself in a shooting position, but saw his shot strike the underside of the post before bouncing out.

However it was Valencia who took the lead two minutes into the second half when Morientes latched on to Baraja's pass before slotting home past keeper David Cobeno from the edge of the area. Almeria pressed ahead in search of an equalizer and got one in the 63rd minute when Negredo rose high to meet Corona's corner and his glancing header just managed to squeeze into the far post.

Having already dropped points in the 3-0 thrashing by Villarreal, Valencia were in danger of losing more ground, but managed to take the lead in the 81st minute. Miguel Angel Angulo's free kick took a deflection and rolled into the past of Moretti who made no mistake in deriving the ball into the roof of the net from six yards out.

Moretti could have doubled the lead minutes later but his header was saved brilliantly by Cobeno. Almeria had a chance to equalize late in the game but Albert Crusat's shot went just wide of the post as Valencia managed to hang on to the result and register their first win of the season.

Deportivo La Coruna registered their first points of the season with a 2-2 draw against newly promoted Valladolid team in their La Liga clash on Sunday.

Having already lost to another promoted team Almeria on the opening day of the season, Depor were once again unable to stamp their authority in the match as they went behind twice in the game, though they managed to equalize on both occasions.

Valladolid started strongly in search of their second successive win and created early chances as Sisi Gonzalez saw his shot blocked by a last ditch tackle by Fabricio Coloccini while Joseba Llorente shot just wide of the post. The hosts dominated the game as Oscar Sanchez shot just wide and then Sisi forced a save from keeper Dudu Aouate.

Valladolid finally took the lead in the final minute of the half as Calvo rose high to head home Daniel Kome's corner from inside the penalty box. Valladolid could have doubled the lead minutes into the second half through Borja Fernandez but his effort was saved spectacularly by Dudu.

Deportivo finally equalized in the 54th minute Taborda met Manuel Pablo Garcia's cross with a thumping header past Ludovic Butelle to open his team's account this season. However the parity was short-lived as Valladolid retook the lead 20 minutes later through Sisi who latched on to a pass from Llorente to drive a stinging shot into the bottom-left corner.

The hosts pressed forward in search of a killer goal and in doing so allowed Deportivo space at the back which the visitors fully exploited to draw level 6 minutes later through Ivan Riki whose shot from outside the area bounced off Rafa Lopez and into the net.

Valladolid had one great chance of scoring the third but Llorente's shot was saved in style by Dudu. Deportivo next take on Real Betis after the international break while Valladolid face Valencia.

Murcia continued their fine showing after being promoted to the La Liga this year with a 0-0 draw away to Levante. In their first game Murcia had trashed Real Zaragoza and in this game they had to defend resolutely to prevent a disappointing Levante from scoring.

The game was a dull affair for the 12,000 fans that turned up on Saturday night with both sides lacking the killer instinct to break the deadlock. Uruguay midfielder Pablo Garcia had the first shot on goal for Murcia, but his feeble effort was easily blocked by Levante goalkeeper Marco Storari.

Just after the quarter hour mark, Savio Bortolini sent a free-kick sailing over the bar at the opposite end of the pitch. On 27 minutes, Fernando Baiano had a brilliant chance to put Murcia ahead, but his shot was deftly put away by Storari.

The dull atmosphere of the first half continued into the second as well with both teams content to sit on the back. Ghanaian striker Mustapha Riga looked to have made it through to the goal for Levante on 49 minutes, but was pulled up by what appeared to be a marginal off-side decision by the linesman.

Savio sent a stinging drive on 65 minutes that looked goal bound, but his shot just brushed past the post. Substitute Quique De Lucas' brilliant cross in the dying minutes almost won the game for Murcia, but Jofre's header just missed the target.

Murcia next take on Athletico Madrid, while Levante face Racing Santander.

Watch Spanish La Liga Live on free-football.tv.

Atletico Madrid 1-1 Real Mallorca

Atletico Madrid's stuttering start to the season continued with a disappointing 1-1 draw against Mallorca in their La Liga clash on Sunday.

Having lost to Real Madrid on the opening day of the season, Atletico started strong and dominated possession throughout the game. However they were unable to snap up their chances and instead faced the prospect of defeat as Daniel Guiza gave the visitors an early lead. However Mariano Pernia scored 13 minutes from time to snatch a point for Atletico.

The hosts created the first chance of the game in the 16th minute when Simao stepped up to take a free kick after Maniche was fouled near the penalty area. The Portuguese midfielder curled in a great shot but was saved spectacularly by Miguel Moya.

Mallorca took the lead in the 20th minute completely against the run of play as Guiza volleyed home a great shot after reaching Gutierrez Jonas' cross from the left wing. Atletico Madrid stepped up a gear in search of the equalizer and Moya had to be alert to deny Maxi Rodriguez from another set piece.

Diego Forlan went closest to scoring for the hosts in the first half when he rose high to meet Pernia's corner from the left but saw his header go inches high of the crossbar. Mallorca managed to keep Atletico at bay for a majority of the second half even though the hosts dominated the possession.

Atletico introduced Jose Antonio Reyes to replace defender Giorgos Seitaridis while Mallorca went on the defensive with Fernando Varela replacing striker Antoni Tuni. The visitors looked to shut up shop for the remainder of the game but were unable to prevent Atletico from equalizing.

Pernia latched on to a loose ball near the edge of the area before releasing a stinging right-footed drive past a helpless Moya to draw Atletico level in the 77th minute. Mallorca hung on to the result till the final whistle to grab a point as Atletico will be disappointed a result that they had expected to go their way.