Real madrid 4 - 3 Malaga


Argentine striker Gonzalo Higuain scored all four goals as Real Madrid came back with 10 men to beat promoted Malaga 4-3 at the Bernabeu.

The injury-hit side were under pressure to appease the Bernabeu faithful who had whistled the team during Wednesday's 2-0 Champions League defeat at home to Juventus.

They got off to a bad start when Malaga's Portuguese midfielder Eliseu dribbled off the wing past two defenders. When his pull-back was fired against the post he put away the rebound.

The home team responded quickly with Higuain netting after Francesc Arnau could only parry Marcelo's shot but a low cross from Duda caught Real defender Gabriel Heinze flat-footed in the 18th minute leaving Malaga striker Nabil Baha free to score.

Higuain came to the rescue from the penalty spot after a handball on the edge of the area, but Real were reduced to 10 men when defender Sergio Ramos stepped on Eliseu's chest after a challenge.

Duda was fouled in the area and Apono drilled home a penalty to restore Malaga's advantage, but the lead only lasted a minute until Higuain beat Arnau from well outside the area.

The home crowd came to life and Higuain was bundled over for a penalty on the counter-attack in the 78th which the 20-year-old put away on the rebound, and both sides came close to adding another goal in the frantic closing stages.